BASS
INTERVALLIC STACKING FOR EAR TRAINING AND TECHNIQUE BUILDING | Adam Nitti
In this article I want to present some interesting intervallic exercises that are fantastic for both developing your ear training and building your technical competence on the fingerboard . These exercises are admittedly more challenging than your typical scalar exercise because of the intervallic distances you are connecting ; however , you will find that they also can inspire some awesome-sounding fill ideas if you know where to place them .
As you work on these , it is important that you don ’ t end your training after you get technically proficient with them . These are fantastic patterns for developing a more advanced level of ear training because they connect intervals that we don ’ t typically play in tandem in our average basslines . Hearing the notes in sequence as we play them will naturally be part of the process of playing them , but the challenge that I ’ m asking you to accept is the predictive hearing of each note .
In other words , I want you to be able to hear each subsequent note in each series before you even play it , which is the net result of having internalized the shape in your ears from repetition . That is ultimately how you know that you have internalized a line . The lines that you spontaneously hear while you play need no translation process or delay before execution . You become one with your bass because your ears and your hands are in perfect synchronization , and you are literally playing what you hear just as easily as you can speak your native language .
HYBRID STACKED INTERVALS These exercises will take two specific chosen intervals and stack them as a two-note grouping from each note of a G major scale . For demonstration context , I will be covering a range of notes that would occupy a single position using 3 note per string shapes on a 4-string bass . Obviously , you can extend the range of these if you have an extra 5 th or 6 th string , so feel free to augment each exercise accordingly .
Exercise 1 : Mixed 2 nds / 5 ths This exercise combines an intervallic 2 nd and an intervallic 5 th and plays this from each note of the G major scale in a diatonic fashion . It starts on the root of the G major scale and then stacks the 2 intervals from there . First we play the G , and then play a diatonic 2 nd from there on the A . From the A we move a diatonic 5 th ( from the A ) to an E . That completes the first series of the intervallic pair and then we move on to each successive note of the G major scale .
Exercise 2 : Mixed 3 rds / 4 ths This one combines an intervallic 3 rd and an intervallic 4 th and once again plays this from each note of the G major scale in a diatonic fashion .
Exercise 3 : Mixed 6 ths / 3 rds This exercise combines an intervallic 6 th followed by an intervallic 3 rd .
CONSECUTIVE STACKED INTERVALS You can also use this approach with two consecutive intervals . In other words , you would take the same sized interval ( be it 3 rds , 4 ths , or 5 ths , etc .) and apply it diatonically to the scale you are building from .
Exercise 4 : Consecutive 3 rds In this exercise we will stack two consecutive
Exercise 1
3 rds . Many of you will recognize this as being a series of diatonic triads played from each member note of the G major scale .
Exercise 5 : Consecutive 4 ths This exercise stacks two consecutive 4 ths on each note of the scale . To play it accurately , it helps to use barring-type positioning with the fretting fingers so that you can stay in position and utilize good economy of motion .
Exercise 6 : Consecutive 5 ths In this exercise we are stacking two consecutive 5 ths to create a sequence of notes that create a dramatic ascending build .
As you can see , stacking intervals can create some unique melodic shapes . If you haven ’ t played exercises like these before , take your time and make sure that you are playing each note as accurately as possible . And once again , I can ’ t emphasize enough how important it will be to use these newly adopted shapes as ear training exercises , as well . I hope that these will inspire you to try them in fills and improvised lines . Until next time , have fun in the shed !
Adam Nitti Nashville-based Adam Nitti balances his roles as a solo artist , sideman , and educator . He has filled the bass chair for Kenny Loggins , Carrie Underwood , Dave Weckl Band , Michael McDonald , Susan Tedeschi , Steven Curtis Chapman , Mike Stern , Brent Mason , Wayne Krantz , and Christopher Cross , while also releasing five solo CDs to date . As a Nashville session bassist he has played on multiple Grammywinning and Grammy-nominated albums , and is also the founder of ...
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