new to learning by ear, having some issues

[Soverntear]

hey everyone, my teacher has got me learning With a little help from my friends by ear. This is the first thing i have ever tried to learn by ear. as it stands on about 5 notes in and stuck. I know its in E, teacher told me that :P. any tips on how to learn this song?

i've tried the singing the bass thing, it hasn't helped much. Ive also started using earmaster pro to try and devolpe my ear some more. I found an isolated version of the bass line which has helped me get to where i am now. im kinda stuck and a bit discouraged that im unable to figure out such a simple line.

[MalcolmAmos]

Which line are you following? Melody line or treble clef I presume. This helped me.

Song is in what key? You have a pretty good chance the first chord is the tonic chord. Let's say it's C. That means your first note is probably going to be a C, E or G. What is the first lyric word? Let's assume it is Somewhere.

Sound a C and say somewhere how does the C sound?
Well C is not enough is it. We need two notes for some-where. OK try C, E. How does that sound? Try E, G how does that sound and then try G, C. Which is it? OK you have more than chord tones you can use. Next try pentatonic notes - 3 chord tones and 2 safe passing notes. If you do not find what you want in the chord tones, pentatonic passing notes you always have 2 more in the full C scale. When you get that worked out keep reciting lyrics words and finding notes in the C scale that sound good with that word. Keyboard works better than 4 guitar strings.

Only 7 notes and the next one is probably just a short distance (scale degree) from the last note.

Yep, you gotta write them down as you find them. Be awhile before you can play an entire song by ear.

Should have used the key of E. First chord probably is an E. First notes probably E or G# or B. Try your first word see if it flows with what you already have. E Major pentatonic is E, F#, G#, B, C# - you pick up the F# and the C#. The last two notes in the E scale are the A and D#. To review start your search with chord tones, pentatonic next then the last two notes from the full 7 note tonic scale.

Have fun.

[Soverntear]

should have noted the beatles here not the eagles :P

also malcolm im gonna have to reread that a few times, a bit new to music so my brain shorted out the first time :P

[JTE]

Let's start with a really simple example. You DO know what "Happy Birthday" sound like, right? OK, now SING it to yourself about five times to fix that note pattern in your head (do this without your bass first). Now, grab a not in the middle of the bass as your arbitrary starting point, say the D at the fifth fret.

Now play that note. That's the first note of "Happy Birthday". Now sing the first two notes. Is that second note the SAME as the first one, or is it HIGHER than the first one, or is it LOWER than the first one. That's your first pitch discrimination, the second note is only one of three places- lower, same, or higher. Once you determine which direction you're going, then try a note. LISTEN to what you played and compare it to what you sang. Did you get it? Then write them down so you don't forget. But if you muffed it, then go back to your first note, sing it and then sing the second note and try another note on your bass to match. Repeat as needed...

Those simple steps are the way you learn to play any line. The difference between "Happy Birthday" and copping something like "My Girl", or "Day Tripper", or "Donna Lee" is the speed, the range of the notes, the melodic complexity, and the rhythm. But the PROCESS is exactly the same.

There are some things you can do while your practicing that'll help you develop your ability to find the right note more quickly. First, SING everything you play- when you're practicing scales, arpeggios, and bass lines, SING them. That helps your ear and hands learn together how a particular sound lays under your hands. Second, practice playing melodies, not just bass lines. That's because melodies will often get your ears and fingers going to places bass lines won't take them (has the very cool side effect of making you a more melodic bassist, and a better soloist too). Get some sheet music, learn to read treble clef as well as bass clef, and cop melodies to standards, show tunes, and great pop melodies (a Beatles song book will give you a lifetime of melodies).

And practice it. Do some every day. It's a process and it's an exercise. You gotta keep doing it, and if you slack off, the skills atrophy real fast. I suck at it right now because I've not pushed myself to have a defined practice process for too long now.

John

[sleepytime]

Originally Posted by Soverntear

hey everyone, my teacher has got me learning With a little help from my friends by ear. This is the first thing i have ever tried to learn by ear. as it stands on about 5 notes in and stuck. I know its in E, teacher told me that :P. any tips on how to learn this song?

i've tried the singing the bass thing, it hasn't helped much. Ive also started using earmaster pro to try and devolpe my ear some more. I found an isolated version of the bass line which has helped me get to where i am now. im kinda stuck and a bit discouraged that im unable to figure out such a simple line.

The old-fashioned way...

You work hard, you keep at it, you don't give up. You get better, you learn a lot.

[DudeistMonk]

The chorus is any easier place to start BTW...just be aware that that there is a chord change on beat 3 of the first bar.

Learning songs is easier when you know the chord progression so figure that out key > chord progression > bass line

[ArticulatedFeel]

Originally Posted by DudeistMonk

The chorus is any easier place to start BTW...just be aware that that there is a chord change on beat 3 of the first bar.

Learning songs is easier when you know the chord progression so figure that out key > chord progression > bass line

Newbie question, How do you figure out the chord progression with a bass?

[MalcolmAmos]

Originally Posted by ArticulatedFeel

Newbie question, How do you figure out the chord progression with a bass?

I hope you mean; "How do you figure out the chord progression". Good question, where to start? First a chord progression is not specific to a bass. Each song has a chord progression. How do you know what it is? You can assume certain things or you can look at some sheet music. Most of the time if I do not know the chord progression this song will use I ask what key the song is in. Knowing the key I then can assume what chords will be used. Country, Rock and most Pop music will 1) be major and revolve around the I, IV or V major chords of that key. Like DudeistMonk said; "... so figure that out -- key > chord progression > bass line".

Chords move the verse along the path all verses must follow. What must they follow? The story. A thought is introduced, discussed and a conclusion is made. The verse then ends and a new thought is brought up in verse number two. This movement is helped with the chords used, i.e each verse starts at rest (The I chord is a good candidate) moves to tension (IV chord) reaches climax (V or V7 chord) and then resolves back to rest (I chord). Most verses have a four line structure. The first two lines complete one I IV V I progression and the same progression is repeated in the last two lines. So you can assume that is going to happen. That's what we do when we jamm a chord progression, have a pretty good idea what is going to happen then listen to see if that comes about. Blues song - grab the 12 bar blues chord progression you won't go to far wrong.

Of course your best bet is to obtain some sheet music and use that to find how the chords progress. Fake chord, lead sheet or chord charts simplify this process.

Beside that verse movement - Rest, Tension, Climax, Resolution and return to Rest the melody line and the chords used under it should share some of the same notes. When the melody moves on to notes not found in the "old" chord, you no longer harmonize and you ear tells you it's time to find a chord that does have some of the new melody notes in it's makeup. So it's a balancing act between moving the verse and harmonizing the melody line. Great thing about the I IV V chords - they contain every note in the scale. So sooner or later one of those three chords is going to come in play and harmonize the melody line.

Long story short. Find some fake chord sheet music on the song. The song writer has figured all this out for you.

Now if you were asking about what bass line you use over a specific chord progression - that's another story.

[Floyd Eye]

Put on the record, play along until you got it. That's how I did it 25 years ago.