Weekly assignment 1:

Arpeggio shapes on bass!

Lessons to practice:

Arpeggios Lesson: http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/misc-less...peggios-lesson/

Goal : To learn 4 most common arpeggios shapes on bass which will help you in improvisation over common chord changes.

Purpose : Learn which notes you can use when improvising over common chord types. Practice your playing technique along with the shapes.

Instructions :

I want you to learn all 4 arpeggios shapes included in the lesson : major 7, minor 7, dominant 7 and minor7b5 . For each shape there is a ascending and descending version included. I want you to both learn the shapes/patterns but also to think in intervals and to notice which ones you are using in which shape.

Requirements :

Post updates on your practice daily if possible, describing what have you done. You want to work on memorizing these shapes and interval formulas. When practicing arpeggios, play with a metronome or backing tracks from the lesson. This will be a great technique exercise. Try to incorporate all the rules you learned in "Technique exercises" you did in first assignments (remember to alternate when playing). I want you to post audio or video of you playing these arpeggios : D major 7 , D minor 7 , D dominant 7 and D minor7b5 against a metronome backing or drum backing track at tempo 80 bpm (play straight 8th notes).Play the ascending version of arpeggios. I can upload a drum backing track for you if you want.

Deadline to complete: 11th of October

Good luck and remember to post your questions and progress!

How are you doing my friend? How is work on the assignment going ? Do you need any help or clarification?

Here is the backing track to use when recording your assignment take (you need to record only ascending versions of arpeggios) , its 80bpm:

Click to view attachment

Looking forward to your take on the assignment!

I should have a take up by tonight (tomorrow for you).

Thanks for all your hard work on this.

Weekly assignment 2:

Improvisation - roots, 3rds and 5ths (triads improvisation!)

Lesson to practice: http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/ls/walking-bass-concept-4/

Goal : To learn the concept of improvising a walking bass line using roots 3rd and 5ths (triads) as a note choice in a 4 feel type of line.

Purpose : Develop new improvisation skills and vocabulary.Enable you to improvise on a spot walking bass line to any chord progression.

Instructions :

First check out the lesson and learn it by heart. Make sure you understand the concept behind this kind of improvisation. You want to use only roots 3rds and 5ths as your note choice. Make sure you follow the chord progression so that you connect what is being played with the chords in backing - that is very important. Walking bass line will be 4 feel - that means 4 quarter notes per bar. Try to get in that kind of groove and keep time well. Once you learn the lesson, start practicing your OWN improvisation over the same backing track. I want you to spend at least 2 hours during the week just practicing your own improvising over the backing. When improvising I want you to play the backing and look at the printed chord staff (progression on paper) and by following chords - choose appropriate roots 3rds and 5ths for improvisation.

Additional info: Roots 3rds and 5ths are building blocks of triads - 3 note chords. In the previous lesson you have learned 7th arpeggios shapes which include : root - 3rd - 5th - 7th . For this assignment I want you to use only appropriate root - 3rd - 5th for improvisation. When I say appropriate I mean to match the chords in backing and use appropriate triads. So if its a major chord you will play : root - major 3rd - perfect 5th , if its a minor chord you are playing: root - minor 3rd - perfect 5th.

Requirements :

Post updates on your practice daily if possible, describing what have you done. I want you to record in video (or audio only if you can't make it) your OWN roots 3rds and 5ths improvisation over the same backing. I will attach the backing track and chords progression in a day or two, which you will be using to record your own improvisation during the weekend!

Deadline to complete: 18th of October

Good luck and remember to post your questions and progress!

Can I jump ahead and post what the chord progression is?

Key of A.

|Bm |Bm |AM |AM |DM |DM |EM |EM | F#m |F#m |Bm |Bm |C#m |C#m |G#dim |G#dim |AM |AM |B


Sound like B dorian (2nd mode of A).

Right?

Hello,

This is the chord progression of the track:
Bm - A - D - E - F#m - Bm - C#m - G#dim - A - Bm

Its a progression in the key of A major.

Each chord is repeated for two bars.

For improvisation I want you to use triads as your note choice. Triad is a three note chord stacked in 3rds.

For minor chords use minor triad: root - minor 3rd - perfect 5th
For major chords use major triad: root - major 3rd - perfect 5th
For diminished chord use diminished triad: root - minor 3rd - diminished 5th

Start each appropriate triad on root of the chord you are improvising over and you'll have 3 notes as your choice.

Here is the backing track for the improvisation:

Tempo is 120 bpm.

Click to view attachment

Looking forward to your improv over the backing!



Great job on assignment! I can see that you memorized all the shapes well! You will be using them a lot when constructing bass lines in the future so try to refresh your memory from time to time if you forget them

P.s. audio/video quality was very good too!

How are you doing? Do you need any help with the assignment?

Cheers Bogdan!

Should have a video up by tonight. My wife wasn't feeling well, so the time I would have spent recording a video yesterday was spent wrestling with my grandson.

Gah. Life got in the way of sitting down to make a proper video. Here's a quick take for you.

Weekly assignment 3:

Groove - Motown Funk Feel

Lesson to practice: http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/ls/motown_funk/

Goal : To learn the whole lesson and get the understanding of Motown funk type of groove.

Purpose : To practice your time keeping skills. Learn how to incorporate dead notes in a groove to make it more "groovy" and interesting. To understand a basic Motown funk groove feel.

Instructions :

Check out the lesson and learn it by heart. You should pay attention to timing and groove which is our main focus here. You are using dead notes in this groove and hopefully you will recognize the main theme of the groove which is a basic Motown Funk Feel. You should focus on getting this lesson tight in time which is very important. You want to play exactly on beat (or "slightly" behind the beat) to get in the pocket. Don't rush it and play in front of the beat which is bad.

Requirements :

Post updates on your practice daily if possible, describing what have you done. I want you to record in video (or audio only if you can't make it) performance of the lesson. I will attach in a day or two the backing track to use for recording.

Deadline to complete: 25th of October

Good luck and remember to post your questions and progress!

I worked on the Motown lesson today. Shouldn't have too much trouble getting that one down.

Excellent! Looking forward to that video!

Very nice take! I can see that you have utilized the arpeggios knowledge in this one so you didn't make mistakes in note choice (only one minor mistake somewhere in the middle). You could have gone with the more interesting phrasing utilizing different patterns but we'll get to it in later assignments. Main thing here I want you to focus on in future assignments is to play full quarter notes. You need notes sounding full and almost overlapping one over the other when walking a bass line. It will fill out a lot of sonic space and propel the line forward. In this take you have shortened a little those notes so they sound a little "staccato like". Just pay attention not to mute the previous note and to hold it down with the fretting hand - until you play the second note you wanted - then you can ease the grip on the previous one and let it disappear. Pay attention to this detail, its minor and easy to fix and it will mean a lot to overall impression.

Good job man!

I worked on the Motown lesson for quite a while yesterday. I've almost got it down, I just need to make that 'slap' on the 2 count of most measures sound out more. Right now it sounds a little dull and inconsistent.

That is good news! That "slap" is a pretty interesting technique. It's good for keeping the groove and it's played mostly on snare drum beats. To produce that sound you just let your fingers come down on the string with a decent force and it makes it "pop". Try practicing only that sound/technique alone to see what works best for you and your bass. It needs a little experimenting at first but later you will get used to grooving and keeping time that way.

Can you post the Motown backing track today?

You can find the backing track in this topic: http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_fo...showtopic=29154

Looking forward to your take!

Weekly assignment 4:

Technique and timing workout

Lesson to practice: http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/ls/technique-exercises-3/

Goal : To be able to play all 6 exercises without mistakes on various tempos and all over the fretboard.

Purpose : Develop proper right and left hand technique and posture + work with a metronome to gain better time keeping skills.

Instructions :

Start tempo: 60 bpm
Target tempo: 120 bpm
Time to practice: 30 minutes daily

You should start by playing quarter notes (meaning one note per metronome click). After you successfully master the tempo of 120bpm (in quarter notes) switch to playing 8th notes (meaning 2 notes per metronome click). You need to play each exercise continuously over whole fretboard. In practice that means - you want to start an exercise on 1st fret, do the exercise ascending and descending and once you finish the pattern immediately move the whole thing one half step higher starting now on 2nd fret and move up the neck that way. For successful practice you need to be able to get to the 12th fret without mistakes on each tempo you practice on.

Rules of the practice:

1. Fretting hand will be fretting 1 finger per fret. You fretting hand thumb should be behind the neck - giving support.
2. Picking hand will be doing alternate picking. When picking notes alternate strictly between index and middle finger. Keep alternating even when changing strings you are playing on. Playing two notes in a row with a same finger is considered as a mistake when doing this kind of practice.
3. Picking hand thumb should be anchored on a "string above" the one you are playing on. If you are playing on E string, rest the thumb on the pickup. If you are playing on G string rest the thumb on D string - you get the concept.
4. Do not go to a higher tempo until you are comfortable on the previous one regarding all aspects mentioned.
5. Making mistake in alternating, fingerings or thumb positioning will restart your exercise. Pay attention to ALL the points mentioned. Do not go to a faster tempo if you can't maintain perfection in all three aspects (alternate,thumb position,fingering).

Requirements :

Post updates on your practice daily if possible, describing what have you done. On which tempo have you started and ended up. What part of the exercise (technique) is challenging etc...
In the end of the week I want you to record all 6 patterns played on the tempo your are comfortable with (highest comfortable one for you at that time) starting from 1st and ending on 12th fret. Include a metronome click or drum backing in your recording. Recording should be VIDEO.

Deadline to complete: 1st of November

Good luck and remember to post your questions and progress!

p.s. you have got some experience with these exercises but I want you to focus more on the technique. Pay attention to all the details described in rules of the practice + try to have transitions between two notes as smooth as possible (avoid staccato sounding practice). This weeks set of exercises starts on ring finger so they may be a little more difficult then others (ring finger is our weakest finger).



Very nice take!

I would recommend concentrating on the timing in this lesson. Motown funk usually has a layedback feeling to it. That means you should be playing exactly on beat or slightly behind it. In this take you were rushing it a bit on different parts and did not find the right pocket. Playing in front of the beat is considered "anti beat" and it doesn't work well especially for funk music. You found the right pocket in the part on 0:36 for example. Recorded sound lacked some bass frequencies, I got the impression that you dialed in lots of treble in order to get the "pops" out but gennerally those pops sound actually thinner with lots of treble and do work better with bassy sound. This groove has lots of dead notes in, I would recommend picking slightly harder those notes to get them even more out and give them more powerful sound. Overally its a cool take on the lesson and I think you got a hang of the motown feel. Keep up the good work!

How is the practice going?

It's good. I'll have a video up by Monday.

Excellent! Looking forward to it! You should do this exercise more often and concentrate on notes transitions to get them smooth. Its a really rewarding exercise and results are often visible after a short practice time.

edit: you can use the drum backing track from the last time (exercises mtp take).

I'll need that take in order to close this thread so we can continue the mtp for the next month!

Cheers

I couldn't find the backing track from before, so you're getting me raw without anything to hide behind.

I want to congratulate you on good work this month! You have mastered arpeggio shapes well, you have recorded a nice walking bass improvisation and you have done a good job with the groove study in the motown funk lesson. You have also done a good job practicing technique exercises. I'm really proud of your progress and dedication! Keep up the good work!

Assignment 1 - completed -
http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_fo...st&p=431970
Assignment 2 - completed -
http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_fo...st&p=434291
Assignment 3 - completed -
http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_fo...st&p=435918
Assignment 4 - completed -
http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_fo...st&p=438813

Great job man!