scale exercies

[karlplaysbass]

hey everyone i was just wondering how everyone else goes about practising scale and if any one had some cool exercises to share . cheers

[ambient]

Something I learned at uni was to play intervals through the scale, start with 3rd's, then 4th's, 5th's etc. That's a nice exercise.

[Dad3353]

[quote name='karlplaysbass' timestamp='1435522966' post='2809702']
hey everyone i was just wondering how everyone else goes about practising scale and if any one had some cool exercises to share . cheers
[/quote]

Good evening, Karl...

I don't 'practise' scales as such; I read 'em (or work 'em out...), then play them as melodies, arpeggios or chords over a song of any sort (often a 'standard', but not necessarily...). I've never seen the point nor benefit gained from going through 'em, either up and down, or 'mixing it up'. Playing in the context of the music is what I usually work on, and, completely redundant now (being old...), but speed per se has never been of interest to me. Just my tuppence-worth.
Disclaimer: I'm rather a plodding duffer of a player; certainly no maestro nor virtuoso. I'm also principally a drummer, so what would I know..?

[Bassman Sam]

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1435526465' post='2809770']
I'm rather a plodding duffer of a player; certainly no maestro nor virtuoso. I'm also principally a muppet, so what would I know..?
[/quote]

This describes me to a tee.

[Delberthot]

28 years later and I really couldn't tell you what any of the scales are.

[Roland Rock]

I spent ages working through scales in any given key through all the major modes. It's a very useful thing to do in terms of understanding modes and technique.
In terms of real-world playing though, I realise now that working through chord tones is much more important for basslines.

The way I did it was kind of like furnishing the house before erecting the walls!

Edited June 29, 2015 by Roland Rock

[Phil Starr]

Another one whose house of bass hasn't been built properly here

Good luck with this, a couple of years ago I asked a similar question: how would learning scales improve my playing as opposed to just learning box patterns which is how I currently tend to think. I never did get an answer which convinced me enough to go out and learn all the scales. Time is short and I've usually got half a dozen songs I'm learning. I know the people who know scales learn much more quickly than I do but by and large they all also have formal music education and have been playing a lot longer so I've never been able to distinguish cause and effect.

I'm not averse to learning music theory but I kind of need someone to be able to say this is how your bass playing is practically going to benefit from the hours spent learning scales over all the octaves, in all the modes.

Edited June 29, 2015 by Phil Starr

[Coilte]

While there is no doubt that knowing your scales is important, equally (if not...more so...are CHORD TONES). When people say they "know" their scales, quite often they mean that they can play them at 100 MPH up and down the neck. While this is helpful, it is only half the "picture". You need to be able to harmonise the major scale, and know how CHORD TONES are derived from scales.

As for modes, IMO they are best left until the player has the basics down and has become a more "mature" player. Focusing on modes as a beginner is a recipe for dead ends and frustration.

Dont take [i]my [/i]word for it :

[url="http://www.studybass.com/lessons/bass-chord-patterns/chord-tones-are-primary/"]http://www.studybass...es-are-primary/[/url]


OP, the above site is one of the best. It would help if you went to the study/lesson guide and start at the beginning.

Best of luck with it.

Edited June 29, 2015 by Coilte

[Roland Rock]

[quote name='Coilte' timestamp='1435569233' post='2810002']
While there is no doubt that knowing your scales is important, equally (if not...more so...are CHORD TONES). When people say they "know" their scales, quite often they mean that they can play them at 100 MPH up and down the neck. While this is helpful, it is only half the "picture". You need to be able to harmonise the major scale, and know how CHORD TONES are derived from scales.

As for modes, IMO they are best left until the player has the basics down and has become a more "mature" player. Focusing on modes as a beginner is a recipe for dead ends and frustration.

Dont take [i]my [/i]word for it :

[url="http://www.studybass.com/lessons/bass-chord-patterns/chord-tones-are-primary/"]http://www.studybass...es-are-primary/[/url]


OP, the above site is one of the best. It would help if you went to the study/lesson guide and start at the beginning.

Best of luck with it.
[/quote]

That pretty much sums up the situation in my post 😊

[booboo]

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1435566866' post='2809976']
Another one whose house of bass hasn't been built properly here

Good luck with this, a couple of years ago I asked a similar question: how would learning scales improve my playing as opposed to just learning box patterns which is how I currently tend to think. I never did get an answer which convinced me enough to go out and learn all the scales. Time is short and I've usually got half a dozen songs I'm learning. I know the people who know scales learn much more quickly than I do but by and large they all also have formal music education and have been playing a lot longer so I've never been able to distinguish cause and effect.

I'm not averse to learning music theory but I kind of need someone to be able to say this is how your bass playing is practically going to benefit from the hours spent learning scales over all the octaves, in all the modes.
[/quote]

I'd like the answer to the 'box pattern' thing also. All I can think of is the box can be a bit limiting if you get stuck in one octave of it, and the wheels can come off when you run out of frets at the nut!