Notes in-between chord progressions

[Robsco]

I'm playing along to a backing track, and simply playing roots as 8th notes.

C - Am - Em

Are there any hard/fast rules on notes to play just before changing chord/root?

ie, the last note of the bar before changing.

Whilst still on the C, is it safe to say "anything as long as it's in the C chord, ideally a chord tone?"

Thanks,
Rob

 

[Bioflava]

Hi Rob! Short answer is: no, there aren't hard and fast rules on anything in music!

On the one hand, yes, sticking to chord tones is "safe" in that you are staying within the diatonic framework. On the other hand, the diatonic approach isn't very rock and roll and can sound pretty boring. So, depending on the musical context, try experimenting with both diatonic and chromatic approaches.

I am by no means an expert, but from playing around for a minute it seems like you could chromatically walk down from C (on the E string) to A (on the E string) -- and you could also try playing C (on the A string) and walking up from G to A (on the E). I also didn't mind going from open E to G to A

I'm sure other, more knowledgable players will have other ideas. At the end of the day, if it sounds good, do it!

 

[Groove Master]

Start with scalar tones. Your pool of notes is obviously C major here. Your main connecting notes should be in there. Then use chromatic tones if you need more movement or rhythmic embellishments. These are just starting points but it works all the time ;-) And of course the style you are describing calls for that approach also.

 

[Mushroo]

Hi Rob,

There are 12 notes in the "musical alphabet" and you can play any of the 12 that you like (so long as it sounds good).

Do you practice much transcription? That's a great way to learn how other bassists construct their bass lines.

And of course, it varies a lot depending on the musical genre. Jazz musicians are more likely to play notes "outside" the key than folk musicians, for example.

 

[Robsco]

I was waiting for the old "the rules are, there are no rules"

I'm currently working on improving my ear, bit more religiously than before, with a view to get into transcribing.

Thanks for the answers, kinda what I was expecting, but always good to be sure.

 

[BrianNYC]

One way I found to approach a chord change that's interesting is to outline the secondary dominant of the chord i want to go to. So for instance in your last measure G7 is the V of C. The chord tones are GBDF. All in the key but the F is going to clash with the E of the chord. But you still have the G and B in common. So the F and D are passing tones essentially. Thats not really secondary dominant though because its the V of C.
For true secondary V7 you could to an E7 run before the Am. This brings a G# into the equation. Out of key yes, but temporary and a strong resolution to the Am. Some music likes this kind of "color" some does not. Its up to you to experiment and see what you like.
So next time you're stuck, find the V7 of the chord you want to "land" on and experiment.

 

[Leonid Nidis]

In short(cos there is much theory behind it) it works when you get to the next root from a note above or under it,meaning before AM a G or a B and so on.semi tone notes(chromatic) also a big part of connecting chords like B then Bb to get to AM.

 

[BassChuck]

In practice, moving down by whole step or moving up by half step usually gets the job done. Of course that's a 'one size fits all' kind of thing. Chord tones work until you find something nicer. And if you get a little tired of the scale step connecting chord roots you can almost always count on 'fourth below or fifth above' (same comment as above).
Experimenting is always good and getting and learning to program the iReal Pro software is a wonderful tool.
Just keep working, experimenting, remembering what works and what doesn't. You'll have a large bag of tricks before too long.

 

[mcarp555]

I was waiting for the old "the rules are, there are no rules"

It always bears repeating that theory is not a list of rules for you to follow; it just explains why you might choose to do something (or not).

Scale steps, chord tones, chromatic runs - whatever works for whatever you want to accomplish.

 

[vvvmmm]

I'll just mention the old standby, "repeat it and call it jazz" trope. It's a standby because, for example, if you repeatedly lead into the "A" chord with, say a G (the V of the C and the vii of the A, of course), then that is the bass line - you establish it for everyone (band and listener). Of course, if it doesn't fit the backing track ... but you keep on doing it ... then call it "avant".

 

[Luigir]

I'm playing along to a backing track, and simply playing roots as 8th notes.

C - Am - Em

Are there any hard/fast rules on notes to play just before changing chord/root?

ie, the last note of the bar before changing.

Whilst still on the C, is it safe to say "anything as long as it's in the C chord, ideally a chord tone?"

Thanks,
Rob

There are no strict rules but there is a lot of theory out there to help you and give you new ideas to experiment with.

First thing you could try is look at the first two chords:
C: C E G
A: A C E

say you are in 4/4 start easy putting the tonic, I.e. The first degree on the first beat and use the fourth beat to reach smoothly the tonic of the second bar aka A.

A lot of suggestions of how to do this are found in the walking bass line book by ed Friedland. It costs about 20$ but it pays back. https://www.amazon.com/dp/0793542049/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_79LoCbM4EH3R6

 

[micguy]

In my world (Church music) I make it a point to not get busier than the singers I'm backing w.r.t. grace notes - If they're using grace notes to move from A to B, then a few from me is fine. But if they're not, I try not to stay simple.

One thing that fretless brings in that you can't do on fretted - if you want to do 2 grace notes in a transition (3 steps, so to speek), and move a whole step in total, for example, you can do "third steps" - assuming that things are moving relatively quickly, you can play outside of the normal semitones, and get something that's cool and different. Some may think this is somehow not "right", but used judiciously, it works.

 

[40Hz]

There’s no hard and fast rules for in-between or [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] to use the more formal term for them. They’re part of a larger family of notes referred to as embellishing tones.

There are, however, some general guidelines under music theory (see link above) for where and how to use them. But the bottom line is whatever sounds good and serves the song is what’s right.

 

[sandman357]

I am not an expert in theory but have been playing by ear for more years than I care to admit to and am starting to study theory a bit. If you are trying to develop your ear, what if you mess around and find some things that work with that progression then see if you can find theory that will explain why it works? That is sort of what I am doing. Trying to find theory that explains my playing. It will probably be that no theory will explain what I have going on

 

[Leonid Nidis]

I am not an expert in theory but have been playing by ear for more years than I care to admit to and am starting to study theory a bit. If you are trying to develop your ear, what if you mess around and find some things that work with that progression then see if you can find theory that will explain why it works? That is sort of what I am doing. Trying to find theory that explains my playing. It will probably be that no theory will explain what I have going on

Thats what i been doing,plus you learn what works from known songs learn.started on theory lately...it defently explains everything and you end up in the same place.I found that learning theory is like a short cut to that place.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

1) There are no rules.
2) Any note can be considered a passing tone
3) Use your ears

Njoy!
Dirk

 

[HolmeBass]

Lots of good advice. I wanted to clear something up OP. There are no notes “between the chord progression”. You’re just picking non-root notes to play under a certain chord. The non-root notes can be grouped into three categories of ascending tension: chord tones (including the root but for our discussion here, non-root tones like the 3rd or the 5th). Then are non-chord tones that are “in the scale”. You have some latitude because you can pick the scale, but here the most consonant would be the C major scale. Then there “chromatic” tones that are outside of the two previous category. If you’re not actually playing a chromatic run, like C-B-Bb-A to move from the C chord to the Am chord, for example a secondary dominant riff where you use a G# as proposed, then maybe you’d call the G# “non-diatonic” instead of “chromatic”, but I might still use chromatic as it does approach Am from a 1/2 step away.

But every note you play is being played against, or under, the current chord in the progression. There are no gaps in a chord progression unless the song has a riff, especially a unison riff, at a certain point. And even then, many riffs will outline chord changes, but some don’t.

 

[Duanestuermer]

Oceans: "Free Country"
Here is an example of a recording I did, mostly a simple 8th note chug, but sometimes I wanted to lead to the next chord with a climb, or use a 5th of the chord to slide into the next one.
I also chose not to use the root on some chords to create a sort of tension, or to change the character of the tonality to create interest.

 

[JRA]

I was waiting for the old "the rules are, there are no rules"

true!

in the wild: cats will often use a chromatic run up/down, or the fifth (or dom 7th) on the last one or two 8th notes. i think you could use your ears to make those calls.

good luck!

 

[Whousedtoplay]

I wanted to lead to the next chord with a climb, or use a 5th of the chord to slide into the next one.

P.S. I think the nebulous OP's question - what style, what kind of rhythm pattern, what Tempo, etc...

Your example is not a walking bass line.
C and the bass note, G before A, and B before E or
C and the bass note, E before A...

C, plus G and E before A.
C, plus D and E before A.