How to Play Scales for the Upright Bass Guitar

Bass players use a variety of techniques to add interest to their moving bass lines, especially in jazz, funk, rock and blues genres. These techniques involve manipulation of the scale in some way such as using tritones. A tritone is an interval of 3 whole steps.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Play a simple C Major scale. Then find the note that is 3 whole steps from C. That note is F-sharp, and it is the tritone for C. Notice that if you move up 3 whole steps from F-sharp, you are back to C again.

2. Start with a simple C scale and play a 2-note base line using C and G, or the 1 and the 5 of the scale. Play C-G-C-G.

3. Add the E, or the 3 in the C scale, so that you are playing 1-3-5-1-3-5. Notice how you can change from Major to Minor by switching between E and E-flat. Then go back to play the simple alternating 1-5 bass line.

4. Throw in an F-sharp right before you play the G in the alternating C-G bass line. F-sharp is the tritone for C and notice how it gives the plain 1-5-1-5 bass line a jazzy feel.

5. Find these tritones in other scales so that you can use them in different keys. Use that 3 in the scale to switch from Major to Minor keys, and experiment with adding tritones in both. Experiment with the different effects. This is the beginning of using tritones to spice up your walking bass lines.