Organ pedal notes on music.

[Dulahey]

On some sheet music, there are small bass clef notes that are meant for organ pedals.

Are these good notes for a bass player to play?

Or is it better to stick to playing the root on 1 and playing around the chords like normal?

Specifically, I'm referring to a bunch of Christmas music I just got that we're going to play at church. Nothing fancy.

I'm just curious how proper it is. It doesn't necessarily play the root on beat 1. For an example, I'm looking at a G7 chord here and the organ pedal note is a D. I'm just not sure how an organ pedal works. Does it just play a note? or is it playing a few notes?

 

[bongomania]

It's playing one note, and it would be a perfect note for you to play. Organ pedals are just like piano keys, they're even laid out in the same pattern of sharps and flats.

 

[Dulahey]

If you had to choose playing off the piano part, or the organ note, what would you do?

 

[bongomania]

It's not jazz, so I would play the notes that are already written out for me.

 

[Dulahey]

Thanks, bongo!

 

[Febs]

Remember that notes on your bass sound an octave lower than they are written, so if you are reading piano or organ music, you should play the note an octave higher than you would if you were reading music written specifically for bass. For example, if your organ music shows the E one ledger line below the bass clef staff, you would play the E on the second fret of the D string.

 

[aksteve]

thanks for asking that question! i actually just bought a book that i thought included the Bass parts, but turns out the bass clef was for the piano!! oops! i was going to as that same question.

 

[Dulahey]

Yeah I gotcha Febs. You pretty much have to do that anyway, since that low C and D are very commonly written on piano and the organ part.