Harmony
Roll a gospel tenth over each root
Turn a bare walking bass into a warm gospel left hand by rolling the chord's third a tenth above each root.
Today's Thing
Walk C, Am, Dm, G in quarter notes and roll a major or minor tenth above each root, dead on the beat.
15-Minute Map
- 1Walk four steady roots
- 2Roll one tenth on beat 1
- 3Read major or minor
- 4Roll the tenth on every beat
- 5Play it under a slow tune
- 13 min
Walk four steady roots
Play only the bass roots first, one bar each: C, Am, Dm, G, low in the left hand as four even quarter notes per bar. Set a slow metronome and let each root land dead on the beat. Listen for a groove that never rushes or drags.
- 23 min
Roll one tenth on beat 1
Add the chord's third a tenth above each root, but only on beat 1: C plus E, Am plus C, Dm plus F, G plus B. Strike the bass a hair early and let the top note fall squarely on the beat. Then release the stretch so the hand stays loose.
- 33 min
Read major or minor
Name each tenth out loud before you play it: C to E and G to B are major tenths, Am to C and Dm to F are minor tenths. Keep the bottom note fixed and shift only the top to match the chord. Check that no major tenth ever sits over a minor chord.
- 43 min
Roll the tenth on every beat
Extend the rolled tenth to all four quarter notes of each bar, rolling bottom to top every time. Keep the roots low but not muddy; around an octave below middle C keeps the third singing. Stop when the busy bars start dragging behind the click and slow the tempo.
- 53 min
Play it under a slow tune
Loop the four bars twice with a sparse right hand, or put the harmonized walk under the first eight bars of any slow standard. On beat 4 of each bar, slip in one bare passing note a half step toward the next root, leaving that connector unharmonized so the pulse stays clear.
Stop Here
Keep the roots on the beat and the tenths will do the singing; add richness only after the time is solid.
After playing