1. CREATING BASSLINES SERIES
PLEASE NOTE: This worksheet is for use with all ten creating basslines videos.
School of Music Online
Piano Lessons
Introduction
Thanks for checking out the ‘Creating Basslines’ pack.
If you follow the rules set out throughout this series you should be easily creating basslines on any tunes you come
across. This pack focuses on the swing style in 4/4, however, regardless of the style and meter, the rules can stay the
same and with a slightly different rhythm applied you can easily create basslines to a wide range of styles.
How to practice creating basslines
Working on your basslines is easy. This is the most important thing you need to know... and please take this advice
seriously as it will be the difference between playing great basslines or never getting the hang of them. The trick will be
to not jump ahead until you are fluent with each rule! There are ten rules and each rule has an in depth video which goes
into great detail for you to watch. You can jump ahead and watch the other videos, but please concentrate on nailing
each rule before you move on! You’ll know that you’ve got a rule under your belt when you can easily move through all
the exercises using that rule without losing a beat and without hesitating to get to a chord in time. If you do that, I
promise you will be confidently playing great basslines over any song you pick up without rehearsal.
I personally don’t recommend practicing a set period of time each day on these exercises. I feel that this way of
practicing can be ineffective as our concentration naturally slips after 10 minutes or so. If you enjoy practicing for an
hour at a time then by all means do it. But don’t continue to sit there and practice if you’re not enjoying it or if you’re
thinking about what you need to get at the shops. Short bursts of practice are better. 5 minutes here, 10 minutes there,
etc. That way, you’ll continue to enjoy music, practicing won’t feel like a chore, and most importantly your concentration
will be at its peak for the time you are practicing.
What are the rules of creating basslines?
These are the rules that we use in this series. Instead of the word ‘rules’ we could have also said ‘things that work’ or
‘suggestions’. These are definately things that work but not the only things either. Once you’ve got these down your
basslines will natrually evolve with new things that sound great to your ear. These rules work and can be considered the
basics of creating really solid basslines.
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2. Here are the rules outlined in the video series:
The first two rules should only be practiced in a swing 2 feel. The videos explain this and each rule in great detail.
Bassline Rule #1 Tonic on the chord change
Bassline Rule #2
Skeletons. (5th degree on beat 3)
Bassline Rule #3 Chordal outlining and the basic 4 feel
2 Feel
4 Feel
Bassline Rule #4 Approach the tonic from a semitone below
The following rules should be practiced in a 2 feel and 4 feel. Try not to move on until you can do both feels for each rule.
2 Feel
4 Feel
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3. Bassline Rule #5 Approach the tonic from a semitone above
2 Feel
4 Feel
Bassline Rule #6 Basic pivots
2 Feel
embellished from
semitone below
2 Feel
embellished from
semitone above
4 Feel
embellished from
semitone below
4 Feel
embellished from
semitone above
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4. Bassline Rule #7 Advanced pivots
2 Feel
embellished from
semitone above then below
2 Feel
embellished from
semitone below then above
4 Feel
embellished from
semitone above then below
4 Feel
embellished from
semitone below then above
Bassline Rule #8 Walking up
This rule only applies in a ‘4 feel’ as walking generally implies a note every quarter note.
4 Feel
Bassline Rule #9 Walking down
Once again, this rule only applies in a ‘4 feel’ as walking generally implies a note every quarter note.
4 Feel
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5. Bassline Rule #10
Advanced bassline techniques - pedaling, triplet arpeggios and mixing it all up.’
‘Pedaling’ takes place on the 5th degree of the key center. In this example we have a 2-5-1 progression in Bb. The 5th is
an F so we ‘pedal’ on an F over all 4 bars which are all in the key center of Bb. Please check the video for more detail.
You can also watch the 2-5-1 progression videos available for information on this common progression.
Pedal
Var. 1
Pedal
Var. 2
Pedal
Var. 3
Triplets can be used anywhere but should be used sparingly. Here’s a few examples:
Triplets
Var. 1
Triplets
Var. 2
Finally, you can begin mixing it all up. Take this at your own pace. Start with what you are comfortable with and slowly
begin introducing different rules to make your basslines more complex. At the end of the day you will find your basslines
naturally evolve to be your own individual sound and you will begin to introduce your own rules to your unique sound.
Here’s an example of all rules working together:
#10 Triplets #8 Walking Up #1 Two Feel
#7 Advanced Pivot
#3 Four Feel #6 Basic Pivot
(semitone above then below)
(first three bars) (semitone above)
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6. IMPORTANT: How to practice the rules:
For each rule practice these 4 bar examples one at a time. When you are comfortably playing each four bar line without
dropping a single beat, you are ready to start playing the exercises continuously one after the other. Only when you can
play all exercises back to back using a single rule are you ready to move on to the next rule. If you follow this practice
routine and have the patience to master all rules you will be creating great basslines over any tune. Guaranteed!
Ex. 1
Ex. 2
Ex. 3
Ex. 4
Ex. 5
Ex. 6
Ex. 7
Ex. 8
Ex. 9
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7. Ex. 10
Ex. 11
Ex. 12
Ex. 13
Ex. 14
Ex. 15
Ex. 16
Ex. 17
Ex. 18
Ex. 19
Ex. 20
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8. All the creating basslines rules are explained in great detail within the videos. Feel free to watch them as many times as
you need at www.schoolofmusiconline.com. Please check out the demonstration videos also available on the site. They
will show you the all the rules in action! If you need further support you can post questions or thoughts in the forum.
Best of luck,
Dave Spicer
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