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Theory Archives - Page 3

Learning Modes and Scales: A Study Guide for Bassists
Ask Damian Erskine

Learning Modes and Scales: A Study Guide for Bassists

Q: I hope that you’ll be able to explain this problem. I learned so far that major and minor scales have certain patterns (i.e. minor steps: W,H,W,W,H,W,W). Now, I’ve moved to modes and, for example, the Lydian mode. Does it have the same pattern for minor scale? I found some other patterns on the web, and now I’m confused. It’s...

Memorizing Chords and Scales
Ask Damian Erskine

Memorizing Chords and Scales

Q: I’m lucky enough to attend a college with a robust and demanding music department, and like a lot music in academia, this means I’m playing a fair amount of jazz. I’ve been a fan of the genre for a long time, but I am new to playing it and seem to have run into a problem with improvising and...

Music Theory – Chords in Minor Keys App Released for Android
Apps

Music Theory – Chords in Minor Keys App Released for Android

Stuart Bahn has just released the second in his Music Theory Toolkit Series of apps for Android devices, entitled Music Theory – Chords in Minor Keys. The app trains you to learn all the minor, major, and diminished chords found in all 12 minor keys. Your theory is tested as the app displays a minor key and a roman numeral,...

Breaking Down Music: Start with the Songs You Love
I Wish I Knew That

Breaking Down Music: Start with the Songs You Love

When it comes to music, we all have our favorite bands, our favorite songs, favorite singers, bass players and maybe even some guitar solos. Some of us develop a preference for certain genres; they shape our music library, our concert expenditures and our playing repertoire. It’s easy to know that we like something, mainly because we find ourselves singing along...

App Review: Musicopoulos Music Theory and Practice
Apps

App Review: Musicopoulos Music Theory and Practice

There aren’t many music theory apps I’ve enjoyed using for very long. But Musicopoulos changed that for me on a recent flight home, taking various tests and running their Music Theory and Practice through its paces. This app is fun to use and covers a wide enough variety of content. The thing I enjoyed most about the app is that...

Chord Construction: A Guide for Bassists
Ask Damian Erskine

Chord Construction: A Guide for Bassists

Q: I’ve been playing bass for about four years, and I’ve had difficulty with understanding chord construction on the bass. I know my scales and their modes inside and out, and I know a lot about the fretboard. My technique is good too, but I figured when I was starting out that I really didn’t need to know chords “because...

Jazz ScaleHelper: A Look at the Scale Analysis and Study App for iOS and Android
Apps

Jazz ScaleHelper: A Look at the Scale Analysis and Study App for iOS and Android

Jazz ScaleHelper is, at it’s essence, a discerning ear. The app listens to you play your scales and arpeggios and gives you feedback on what you just played, as well as a grade. It judges your note stability, intonation, time and shows you how many notes per minute you played. The app’s analysis screen presents your scale in notation. My...

Improvising: Scale Substitutions for Bass
Bass Lessons

Improvising: Scale Substitutions for Bass

In this new lesson, we’ll cover some tips on soloing over changes. In the video below, you’ll see that I’m playing chords through a looper, to create the pattern to play against. We start with a D Major scale, over an E minor chord, which is the Dorian mode. The scale: D E F# G A B C# Then, the...

Intergalactic Bass: Scales Arpeggios Fingerings Theory & Much More
Sheet Music & Instruction

Intergalactic Bass: Scales Arpeggios Fingerings Theory & Much More

Hal Leonard has added Carlo Mombelli’s Intergalactic Bass method as their latest book in their Bass Instruction series. The comprehensive, 240-page book is based on the premise that in order to play music, one must have a solid handle on scales and arpeggios. A bassist, composer and educator, Mombelli said he searched for a book on scales and arpeggios to...

Building Bass Lines: Navigating More Changes
Ask Damian Erskine

Building Bass Lines: Navigating More Changes

Q: I have recently begun playing with a pop artist who writes what I would call “chord heavy” songs. These are not your typical I-IV-V tunes, and they definitely aren’t “riffy”; they are tunes with intricate verse and chorus progressions and extended bridges. I have been going off the lead sheets for now, but my question is how can I...

MusicalEar: A Look at the Music Theory and Ear Training App for Desktop Computers
Apps

MusicalEar: A Look at the Music Theory and Ear Training App for Desktop Computers

I’m doing something a little different this time by reviewing an app I came across for your desktop computer. While not an iOS app, I thought that I’d be remiss if I didn’t let you all in on this. MusicalEar is an ear training and theory app, going way beyond any on the market. The app contains over 200 compositions,...

Enclosure Tone Exercises for Bassists
The Lowdown with Dr. D

Enclosure Tone Exercises for Bassists

One way to give more interest to your improvisations is to add enclosure tones to otherwise simple note choices. Enclosure tones are two tones which “enclose” (i.e. one higher, one lower) another note. Generally, but not always, the note which gets “enclosed” is a chord tone. For example, if we begin with the root of a C7 chord: …and precede...