TKenrick

It entirely depends on how you're voicing the chord - both 1 ) and 2) have the same notes and perform the same function, so the order of the pitches within that chord is up to you and depends on what sounds best in the context of the music. The main thing is that the chord contains the notes of Gmaj7 and has a B as its lowest note, the arrangement and spacing of the G, D and F# is dependent on context and is subjective.

I've worked with a few Gospel choirs and had much the same problem trying to find the right things to listen to. A lot of the stuff is horrendously cheesy but there's some great playing in there somewhere... Here are some things that I found useful: Israel & The New Breed: 'Alive From Another Level', 'Alive in South Africa' [media]http://youtu.be/zclad1VP6Uc[/media] Kirk Franklin: [media]http://youtu.be/9CZC3pDGUwc[/media] [media] http://youtu.be/KknzGztPlZ4?t=55s[/media] [media]http://youtu.be/_HAIEve3aME[/media] Natalie Grant: [media]http://youtu.be/Q27kyhSbr3A[/media] Not strictly gospel, but Thadeus appears on the live Jill Scott album 'Experience 826+', which is worth a listen: [media]http://youtu.be/sufdMXM5TUY[/media]

[media]http://youtu.be/fuhHU_BZXSk[/media] Here's a transcription of the unison line that appears at 45 seconds in (and again at 5 minutes), it's a good reading workout for semiquaver subdivisions! The fill in the last bar has a really strong Jaco influence to it... [url="http://tomkenrick.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/screen-shot-2014-02-27-at-22-47-41.png"]http://tomkenrick.fi...at-22-47-41.png[/url]

Your ability to read directly impacts your ability to write things down quickly and accurately, particularly from a rhythmic point of view. This is something that can easily be practised and developed away from an instrument - a good use of time spent in waiting rooms or on public transport, provided you don't mind funny looks from those around you... As far as developing your inner ear to the point where you can hear a melody and notate it immediately without the need for an instrument goes it's a long process (I'm still nowhere near it...). Learning to recognise intervals relative to a key centre is a vital part of this, I found that working through [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hearing-Writing-Music-Professional-Training/dp/0962949671/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393507825&sr=8-1&keywords=hearing+and+writing+music+professional+training+for+today%27s+musician"]Hearing and Writing Music[/url] was a big help, as is [url="http://www.joehubbardbass.com/473/ear-training/"]this Charlie Banacos exercise[/url] for developing relative pitch.

I find it helpful to isolate pitch and rhythm and practise them separately before working on 'real' reading examples. [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Modern-Reading-Text-For-Instruments/dp/0769233775/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1392728595&sr=8-1&keywords=modern+reading+in+4%2F4"]Modern Reading in 4/4[/url] is great a book for getting to grips with syncopation and different combinations of subdivisions (it's also a great cure for insomnia...). Gary Willis has a great pitch reading thing on his site: http://garywillis.com/pages/lessons/read.html

I find that the 1-2-4 system means that I can play comfortably in the first 9 or so frets of the instrument without stretching or straining my left hand - I find that my 'natural' hand span is 3 frets up until the 8th/9th fret, which is where I start using OFPF. Obviously there are exceptions to this, and occasionally I'll use OFPF in lower positions, but only if there's no other way around it. I find the using 1-2-4 feels more secure when fretting notes and allows me to stay more relaxed when playing, especially on longer gigs. There's a Dave Marks vid from a while back where he shares his views on OFPF in lower positions: [media]http://youtu.be/y57-2eaTBwc[/media]

[quote name='yepmop' timestamp='1389400866' post='2333968'] Always thought Sting did very simple lines in the Police songs but they were so effective and catchy. [/quote] Walking On The Moon... [media]http://youtu.be/hxBncnHb8jQ[/media]

[quote name='thebassist' timestamp='1388590851' post='2323740'] I do need to be able to play Birdland and Havona by next Saturday[/quote] Havona in 10 days? Best of luck!

Saw him doing this at Ronnie Scott's last year and it was amazing. His arrangement of 'A Portrait of Tracy' is stunning. Not too shabby on the bass either...

Couldn't have said it any better! [quote name='funkle' timestamp='1378189870' post='2196690'] Bilbo is bang on the money; transcribing is key. By which I mean, learn how to play on the bass what you are listening to (NOT how to write down what you are hearing first, though that is important too). I initially learned intervals years ago but found they weren't terribly useful to me on the bandstand. I have found the 'Charlie Banacos' ear training methods far more effective than learning intervals in the way you describe. Examples of those that have used it include Mike Stern, Chris Tarry, Jeff Berlin, Bruce Arnold, Joe Hubbard, et al. Good descriptions of this type of ear training reside at: [url="http://www.miles.be/articles/14-the-charlie-banacos-exercise"]http://www.miles.be/...anacos-exercise[/url] (original at [url="http://www.franksinger.com/ear%20training.htm"]http://www.franksing...%20training.htm[/url]) [url="http://www.joehubbardbass.com/473/ear-training/"]http://www.joehubbar...3/ear-training/[/url] [url="http://christarrylessons.com/ear-training/"]http://christarryles...m/ear-training/[/url] The software (free) which can get you started: [url="http://www.miles.be/software/4-functional-ear-trainer-basic"]http://www.miles.be/...r-trainer-basic[/url] How to set the software: [url="http://www.joehubbardbass.com/473/ear-training/"]http://www.joehubbar...3/ear-training/[/url] Who was Charlie Banacos? [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Banacos"]http://en.wikipedia....Charlie_Banacos[/url] Bruce Arnold is aguitarist with a good website who essentially breaks down the Charlie Banacos method into bits that he sells. I have bought stuff from him and found it useful. [url="http://brucearnold.com/blog/ear-training-guided-tour/"]http://brucearnold.c...ng-guided-tour/[/url] Doing this and transcribing works synergistically. Transcribing is the ultimate musical vitamin, though - if you're around your bass I would generally say do that. The other ear training stuff I have posted here I have found ways to do whilst I am commuting. 20-30 mins a day whilst commuting adds up to a lot over years, and I have found transcribing easier since I have also done this formal ear training (caveat: though I have also learned solfege before I did that). This cost years of slow discovery. I took my own advice about transcribing later than I should have. Hopefully your journey is much shorter. Pete [/quote] Ron Gorow's book 'Hearing and Writing Music' is also a good resource, but I found that the Banacos exercises were more effective.

Lots of things to read here (excuse the self-serving nature of the link!), I haven't updated it in a while but more transcriptions should be posted soon: http://tomkenrick.wordpress.com/basstranscriptions/

Here's my effort from week 3: http://snd.sc/11dJ9qe

Nice one Matt, thanks for sharing! The more I listen to my effort the more I cringe, but here it is... [url="http://snd.sc/10e7ikk"]http://snd.sc/10e7ikk[/url]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1368178411' post='2074059'] I have just finished week one and am having my a*** kicked. Great introduction and a great way to fill in gaps in your learning. I am hearing faults in my playing that make me cringe but so nice to feel that real progress is possible. [/quote] I feel much the same! Would other BCers who are doing this be up for sharing soundcloud links (via PM if preferred...) from the first assignment? I'd be really interested to hear how other bassists dealt with it - all I got to hear were piano players!

My preference is, like Faithless, to approach things using chord tones, but I know loads of players get great results from the chord/scale approach. As far as the ii-V-i goes, if we're thinking of the Cm chord as tonic minor then things might sound a bit more 'settled' by using Cm6 or Cm(maj7) instead of Cm7 and use C melodic minor over it. G altered = Ab melodic minor, so your only decision here is based on whether you prefer to think about the scale as 'G altered' (parallel thinking) or as 'melodic minor starting on b9 of a dominant chord' (derivative thinking). Using F melodic minor over Dm7b5 gives you D locrian natural 2, so the decision is between having b9 or natural 9 (Eb or E natural). My preference would be E natural, but experiment with both.

[quote name='kiat' timestamp='1364604810' post='2028885'] Can also highly recommend Tom Kenrick in West London who I studied with a while back. Great lessons tailored to suit goals. [/quote] Thanks Kiat, hope all is well with you!