• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Bass Jazz Band Audition I need help PLEASE

T

Turkey357

Oct 22, 2011
29
0
#1
Okay so today I've just received the audition packet for highschool Jazz band. I received it extremely late. Everyone else has had the whole month of May, whereas I only have 9 days. There are 10 other students auditioning. There are four open positions- 2 guitarists, and 2 BASS guitarists. I have no Idea how many are trying out for bass, I only know that I am. I'm an incoming freshman and have been playing bass for 3 & 1/2 years now. I am pretty good, but kind of got skimped out on with my learning since I learned just from my band director/was self taught (I haven't learned the basic scales and such). I have not had the privilege of private personal bass lessons, but I do take private guitar lessons. However, I can read music well.

with that information said, here are the audition requirements.
  • two prepared Etude's
  • Major scales
  • Blues scales
  • Walk a bass line over a blues in the key of F and Bb
  • Demonstrate Bass line in swing, funk, bossa nova, and samba styles
  • sight read

that is a lot. The Etudes are pretty difficult and involve some improv. The thing is, I'm not very experienced with improvising and that is a major part of the audition. I need to learn the scales.

When it says "walk a bass line in the key of F and Bb, does it want me to write one or something or just play one?
same question goes for the demonstration of swing, funk bossa nova, and samba. Does it want me to write it or just find good stuff and play it well for the director?

could you suggest good bass parts for the different styles (funk, samba, swing, & bossa nova).

I need tips on how to play this out. I need to be successful Please help me with any advice and help you can give. Thanks:hmm:
 
#2
OK, as a bassist in jazz band currently, here's the best I can do.

Scales are easy, learn these first. This will help you later.

Figure out the key of the etudes, if the key is not given to you already. I'm assuming you can read music, so learn them. When you improvise, refer to what you have already played, i.e. the part you already learned. Use phrases from earlier and string them together with notes from the key. This is probably as good as you can get with no real improv training.

For the walking, blues is fairly easy. Just play quarter notes within the blues scale, making sure to land on the root of the chord on beat one of each bar with a new chord. If you want to spice it up beyond that, ideas to use: arpeggios, chromatics, holding one note for a bar, leaping a large interval, small rhythmic variations, using more of the fretboard. Proper use of all of these simple concepts will impress your teacher. I would advise you to write a walk beforehand and practice it, then improvise at the audition, using your prepared walk as a guide.

The genres are much trickier for me to help you with.

Funk emphasizes a sixteenth note feel, it's basically very strong rhythmically and uses signature harmonic stuff like flat sevens and flat fives. Highly recommended song: Lousisiana Bebop. Super easy funk thing. Sheet music is online somewhere probably.

Swing is walking bass, with few exceptions. Pick any standard big band chart and you are good to go. Take the A Train is an easy example.

I'm not really a latin guy, but bossanova involves mostly switching back and forth between the roots and fifths of the chords with some passing tones. Samba is a slower version of this (could totally be wrong here, someone correct me).

Good luck! Update us with how you do or ask more questions.
 
#3
Oh, you know blues structure right? A twelve bar blues is four bars of the I chord, two bars of the IV chord, two bars of the I chord, one bar of the V chord, one bar of the IV chord, two bars of the I chord.

So in F, this would be F for four measures, Bb for two measures, F for two measures, C for one measure, Bb for one measure, F for two measures.

In Bb, this would be Bb for four measures, Eb for two measures, Bb for two measures, F for one measure, Eb for one measure, Bb for two measures.

I will definitely be able to help more if you ask me questions, I remember how much my audition stressed me out and it was much easier than yours is.
 
#4
thankyou so much for the reply! umm could you tell me what your audition was like? and could you go into the whole blues thing some more. when you say like "Bb for one measure and then F for two measures" do you mean quarter note Bb's and then quarter note F's or do you mean those note's scales or whatever? I'm confused and low on knowledge in the whole musical theory sector (I do have some basic knowledge, but I guess not enough of it?)

and yes I can read music very well.
 
#5
What do you mean by " I chord and IV chord" what are those? I hate sounding really new and stupid to bass and all that, but I've been playing for years, just learned it in a different learning process than most who take private lessons and such. so I don't have this knowledge
 
#6
Mitchinboxer said:
Oh, you know blues structure right? A twelve bar blues is four bars of the I chord, two bars of the IV chord, two bars of the I chord, one bar of the V chord, one bar of the IV chord, two bars of the I chord.

So in F, this would be F for four measures, Bb for two measures, F for two measures, C for one measure, Bb for one measure, F for two measures.

In Bb, this would be Bb for four measures, Eb for two measures, Bb for two measures, F for one measure, Eb for one measure, Bb for two measures.

I will definitely be able to help more if you ask me questions, I remember how much my audition stressed me out and it was much easier than yours is.
Click to expand...

what do you mean by BARS?
 
#7
Just 2 points, 1st when you walk a blues, don't use blues scale. You can search Paul Chambers( the bassist of Miles Davis) bassljne as reference. If you can put chord tone on beat one and three of every measure then you can mostly outline the chord very well. On beat 2 and 4 you can use scale notes or approach notes.

For solo, if u are not familiar with improv yet, playing scale can be dangerous. If you solo accord to the chords of the étude, just play little bit fragment of melody of it. As many jazzers said, let the melody be ur guide. Also solo on chord tones(1 3 5 7) of the chord. in this way you can spell the changes perfectly or at lest put them on downbeats.

Good luck!
 
#8
Bars= measures, sorry, I didn't think about that one.

OK, when I said I chord and IV chord, that is in intervals of the scale. Bb is the first note of the Bb scale, so it is the I chord in the key of Bb. Eb is the fourth note of the Eb scale so it is the IV chord in the key of Eb. They are in roman numerals.

For actually playing the blues, you will be playing quarter notes, and basically just improvising in the blues scale that way. When you are on the Bb chord, for the first four measures for example, play the Bb scale. When on the F, switch to the F scale.

Does that help?
 
#9
I would also ask what kind of blues they're looking for.

There is a really good chance (given that it's high school band) that it'll be basic I-IV-V blues, but, if they want minor blues or "Jazz" blues (as many of our exercises were in music school), the structure might be different.

For a very, very basic minor blues, here are the last four bars:

|--bVI7b5--|--V7--|--Imin7--|--V7--|

For a Jazz blues, there are a few extra II-V bars that you might want to consider.

Also, if you want good walking practice, since you play guitar, record a number of II-V-I progressions in various keys and practice making up walking lines on them, being sure to hit chord tones (especially I and V) on the downbeats and 3rd beat.

(Ex. F = |--Gmin7--|--C7--|--FMaj7--|)
 
#10
Jim Stinnett's lesson on creating walking bass lines is a good place to start for the blues section, and if you're intending on playing jazz then you will need to understand the concepts he covers with regard to walking bass construction.

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

If you scroll down, there are numerous examples of walking bass for both Bb and F blues, and a large example of a blues in G. But do read through it and try to do the lesson. You will learn a lot.
 
#13
Turkey357 said:
...

I have not had the privilege of private personal bass lessons, but I do take private guitar lessons. However, I can read music well.

QUOTE]

I know some of this might be overwhelming. If you can't find a bass tutor quickly, then you should have your guitar teacher put together a plan for you, based on the advice that has been given so far. Good luck, and let us know how it goes.
:bassist:

Major Scales:
http://www.cyberfretbass.com/scales/basic/index.php

Blues Scales:
http://www.cyberfretbass.com/scales/basic/index.php

Walking Bass in F:

Learn this video in stages. For now, you probably only need the first stage. Stop the vid at about 0:45 to read the music. At this point, you only need the first stage up to about 1:25. Transpose to Bb by moving 5 frets toward the bridge.
Click to expand...
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back