Как написать bassline


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Basslines are very important to a song—even if it doesn’t seem so at first. They provide that moving feeling and display the song’s structure. Depending on the music, there are different methods used to write a bassline, but here are some of the more common ways.

  1. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 1

    1

    Know that before the bassline is written, it is essential to know the chords of a song. Also, the melody is useful to devise the bassline. Until adequate experience is acquired, this should always be the first step![1]

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  1. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 2

    1

    Find the roots of the chord on the bass instruments or write them out on a bass clef with the melody and chords.[2]

  2. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 3

    2

    Repeat. From this point, a punk bassline is almost automatically made by playing repetitively on these notes. To ensure a more interesting line though, it is first useful to smooth out the bassline.

  3. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 4

    3

    To smooth out the bassline, use scales or small jumps to connect the chords together. Don’t be afraid to invert the chords, or change what note in the chord is on the bottom, to make the line smooth.[3]

  4. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 5

    4

    Check the melody. See if it sounds independent of the bassline. Try to use contrary motion, such as when the melody goes up, then the bass goes down and vice versa.

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  1. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 6

    1

    At this point, this is a simple bassline. This may do for some, but the more creative will want to embellish.

  2. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 7

    2

    Experiment with rhythms to get a groove going.

  3. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 8

    3

    Take the other notes in the chord or tones close to the original note and play those once in a while. Be sure to focus on the main note though.[4]

  4. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 9

    4

    Let the bassline complement the other parts. If this has a riff, the bass would love to have its turn with it. Just don’t make it a carbon copy of another part, or else the bassline should take the bus home!

  5. Advertisement

  1. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 10

    1

    Find out what chords your guitarist is playing.

  2. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 11

    2

    Repeat those notes in time with the guitar. Keep experimenting until you are comfortable.[5]

  3. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 12

    3

    Using the notes you were already playing as a base, add different notes to create a melody. Keep experimenting until you find something that sounds good.

  4. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 13

    4

    Take on board constructive criticism from your bandmates. It’s very important that you work together and put in equal amounts of effort.

  5. Advertisement

Add New Question

  • Question

    What other instruments apart from Bass guitar play bass lines well?

    Community Answer

    The upright bass (otherwise known as the double bass or string bass) can play basslines well, especially in certain genres of jazz. The lower register of the piano can also play basslines. If you really wanted to stretch it, you could play a bassline with a low wind instrument, such as a trombone or a bari sax. These two instruments sometimes play basslines, but they often «double» the bass part with an actual bass or the piano’s left hand (at least in jazz).

Ask a Question

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Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

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  • Take into mind the difficulty to actually play the line.

  • You don’t always have to have a bassline. Go with how you feel.

  • Listen to other songs that are of the same style as the future masterpiece. Apparently those songs got somewhere and their basslines worked.

Show More Tips

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

Advertisement

  • Do not give up. This is harder for someone without any formal music background, but it’s possible to figure out.

  • Do not write it one awkward way and be satisfied. It has to complement the parts, not ruin them.

Advertisement

Things You’ll Need

  • Manuscript paper (if knowledgeable of formal music)
  • Basic melody and chords (does not need to be final)
  • Some free time!

References

About This Article

Article SummaryX

The key to composing a good baseline is working around the chords. Once you’ve figured out the chords, write down the root note of each one. The root is always the same as the chord, so in A Major, the root is A. Then, try repeating the notes between chord changes. For example, if your chords change every quarter note, try playing the root notes in sixteenth notes. For something more advanced, add other notes from a chord between chord changes. For instance, if you’re changing between C, F, and G, add an E between the first 2 chords to bridge the gap. You can also experiment with the rhythm of your notes to add some flavor to the bass. For more tips, including how to make your bass line complement the melody, read on!

Did this summary help you?

Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 235,875 times.

Did this article help you?


Download Article


Download Article

Basslines are very important to a song—even if it doesn’t seem so at first. They provide that moving feeling and display the song’s structure. Depending on the music, there are different methods used to write a bassline, but here are some of the more common ways.

  1. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 1

    1

    Know that before the bassline is written, it is essential to know the chords of a song. Also, the melody is useful to devise the bassline. Until adequate experience is acquired, this should always be the first step![1]

  2. Advertisement

  1. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 2

    1

    Find the roots of the chord on the bass instruments or write them out on a bass clef with the melody and chords.[2]

  2. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 3

    2

    Repeat. From this point, a punk bassline is almost automatically made by playing repetitively on these notes. To ensure a more interesting line though, it is first useful to smooth out the bassline.

  3. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 4

    3

    To smooth out the bassline, use scales or small jumps to connect the chords together. Don’t be afraid to invert the chords, or change what note in the chord is on the bottom, to make the line smooth.[3]

  4. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 5

    4

    Check the melody. See if it sounds independent of the bassline. Try to use contrary motion, such as when the melody goes up, then the bass goes down and vice versa.

  5. Advertisement

  1. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 6

    1

    At this point, this is a simple bassline. This may do for some, but the more creative will want to embellish.

  2. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 7

    2

    Experiment with rhythms to get a groove going.

  3. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 8

    3

    Take the other notes in the chord or tones close to the original note and play those once in a while. Be sure to focus on the main note though.[4]

  4. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 9

    4

    Let the bassline complement the other parts. If this has a riff, the bass would love to have its turn with it. Just don’t make it a carbon copy of another part, or else the bassline should take the bus home!

  5. Advertisement

  1. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 10

    1

    Find out what chords your guitarist is playing.

  2. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 11

    2

    Repeat those notes in time with the guitar. Keep experimenting until you are comfortable.[5]

  3. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 12

    3

    Using the notes you were already playing as a base, add different notes to create a melody. Keep experimenting until you find something that sounds good.

  4. Image titled Compose a Good Bassline Step 13

    4

    Take on board constructive criticism from your bandmates. It’s very important that you work together and put in equal amounts of effort.

  5. Advertisement

Add New Question

  • Question

    What other instruments apart from Bass guitar play bass lines well?

    Community Answer

    The upright bass (otherwise known as the double bass or string bass) can play basslines well, especially in certain genres of jazz. The lower register of the piano can also play basslines. If you really wanted to stretch it, you could play a bassline with a low wind instrument, such as a trombone or a bari sax. These two instruments sometimes play basslines, but they often «double» the bass part with an actual bass or the piano’s left hand (at least in jazz).

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

Advertisement

  • Take into mind the difficulty to actually play the line.

  • You don’t always have to have a bassline. Go with how you feel.

  • Listen to other songs that are of the same style as the future masterpiece. Apparently those songs got somewhere and their basslines worked.

Show More Tips

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

Advertisement

  • Do not give up. This is harder for someone without any formal music background, but it’s possible to figure out.

  • Do not write it one awkward way and be satisfied. It has to complement the parts, not ruin them.

Advertisement

Things You’ll Need

  • Manuscript paper (if knowledgeable of formal music)
  • Basic melody and chords (does not need to be final)
  • Some free time!

References

About This Article

Article SummaryX

The key to composing a good baseline is working around the chords. Once you’ve figured out the chords, write down the root note of each one. The root is always the same as the chord, so in A Major, the root is A. Then, try repeating the notes between chord changes. For example, if your chords change every quarter note, try playing the root notes in sixteenth notes. For something more advanced, add other notes from a chord between chord changes. For instance, if you’re changing between C, F, and G, add an E between the first 2 chords to bridge the gap. You can also experiment with the rhythm of your notes to add some flavor to the bass. For more tips, including how to make your bass line complement the melody, read on!

Did this summary help you?

Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 235,875 times.

Did this article help you?

How to write a Bassline?

The bassline is a very important part of songwriting/producing and along with the drums, forms the backbone of a song, the rhythm section is essential to the overall feel of a piece of music. If you have a solid rhythm section, then anything you put on top has a good chance of sounding okay.

The bassline is an essential element of the rhythm section as it contains a lot of information such as tempo, time signature, key (major or minor), musical style, attitude—it’s all there. This is why it is so important to choose the right bassline.

The role of the bass as support for harmony & chord sequences. The bass also has a ‘sonic’ role. It provides the low frequency content of your production. A lot of modern productions are based nowadays around loud and punchy drums and ‘PHAT’ bass sounds.

Who & what will play my bass?

From the 1950s until the 1980s the electric bass guitar has been the instrument of choice for playing basslines.  Up to this time, bass lines were usually played by the Double Bass or Upright Bass, a kind of oversized cello which was normally plucked by the player. The sound of a double bass has a fairly strong attack and doesn’t have much sustain, which doesn’t make it quite suitable if you need to play long notes.

Nowadays, the double bass is mainly used in Jazz music, although here again there are no rules: it really depends on the atmosphere of the track. The electric bass guitar has many advantages over the upright bass: it’s much lighter, making it easier to transport. It’s much smaller and tougher, and therefore less prone to damage in transit.  Being an amplified electric instrument, it can be far louder than an upright bass. And its sound is fuller, deeper and brighter, which makes it far more versatile than its predecessor.

In rock music, the bass guitar always plays the bass line. In fact, whenever a band plays you’ll find there is a bass guitarist (well, nearly)…But what if we’re not playing in a band? What if we’re programming our arrangement using MIDI equipment, samplers and software synthesizers?

The first main two options usually are simulating a “live” bass. Many synths have patches that recreate the sound of a “live” bass, either electric or acoustic or using a synth bass: synthesizers sound great as bass instruments and you will hear many tracks where the bass is played by a synth.

If you want to move away from the conventional approach, then just about anything goes. You can use any sound that you have available to play your bassline, so be creative! Here’s a selection of sounds that you may often hear playing the bassline in popular music:

  • Pizzicato / strings / horns: “In Da Club” springs to mind and quite few Dr DRE productions for example.
  • Hammond Organ: Very popular in House and Garage styles. An original B3 organ is an unwieldy beast and very expensive, so you could use samples instead, or one of the many software instruments that emulate the sound of a Hammond.
  • TR808 kick drum: Eh? A kick drum playing a bassline? Absolutely. In fact this sound formed the basis of many jungle/drum ‘n bass sounds in the 1990s. You sample it, map it across the keyboard so the pitch of the drum changes just like a sample of a voice would do and voilá, instant sub bass!

Which notes should I play?

Each musical genre has its own characteristics, for example, Reggae has very distinctive basslines & sound. The same applies to Drum & Bass, etc.  However, there are certain general rules on how to write bassline that will help you to get going, and as usual, once you know the rules, rules are there to be broken, as long as it works musically.

We’ll start with considering the choice of notes played by the bass. As a general rule, the musical role of the bass is to carry the chord sequence of a tune. So most of the time, the bass will play a note which is in the chord that it supports.

In popular music, you tend to find that the bassline follows the root note of the current chord being played. Here’s a simple example:

Chord sequence C D min F G
Bass note played C D F G

This really couldn’t be simpler, but why is it that this feels natural, complete and comfortable? Let’s take a little look at our old friend, the C chord. As we know, this chord is made up of three notes, ‘C’, ‘E’ and ‘G’, but the most important note by far is the root note ‘C’. The ‘C’ note is the first note on which all the rest are built. It also completes the chord, making it feel whole.

Now take a look at the keyboard when we add another ‘C’ note, this time a whole octave lower:

This note appears to ‘double up’ on the ‘C’ in the chord and in fact that’s exactly what it does. It reinforces the strength of the root note in the chord, making the whole chord sound far more powerful, purposeful and strong.

So why does simply playing the root note an octave lower sound so full, natural and powerful?  Well, in simple terms, you’re directly reinforcing the chords that already exist in the song. You’re adding extra sonic energy at a lower frequency that does not interfere with the other frequencies in the chord, it only adds to them.

If you played any note other than C, you would be complicating the sound of the chord and so would lose a certain amount of power.  We won’t discuss psychoacoustics here, but for some reason human beings feel quite comfortable with low frequencies that we understand and can identify. It helps us to feel ‘grounded’, safe, and a whole load of other feelings associated with our security.

Next time you’re listening to your favourite song at home, try turning the bass on your stereo right down as far as it can go; don’t you instantly feel slightly anxious, just itching to put the bass back in?  In contrast, try turning the treble all the way down. It doesn’t sound great, but you don’t get that anxious feeling to anything like the same degree. Amazing.

Following the chord sequence of your song directly, just playing root notes as your bassline is perfectly acceptable. Listen to any Trance music, any Punk music and you‘ll find that the whole bass line in these styles is simply a rhythmical pulsing of the root note of the current chord. And it feels perfectly natural, strong and most importantly LOUD.

Staying on one note when the chords change

We’ve discussed so far how playing the root notes for the bass is probably the simplest, feels the most natural, and how it can help to make the track sound more ‘comfortable’. However there are actually plenty of occasions where it’s better if we don’t play only the root, for example when you want to bring a bit more tension.

The principle is quite simple: you play one bass note whilst the chords of the song change above it.  Let’s consider this chord progression. You may want to use a piano sound in EXS24, so you can try the following examples.  First play the root notes for the bass part as below:

Chord sequence C F A min
G
Bass note played C F A G

So far so good. Now this time, try playing the same note C for the bass throughout the chord sequence, as below:

Chord sequence C F A min
G
Bass note played C C C C

You’ll notice that having the bass note staying the same throughout our sequence alters the feel of it dramatically. The sequence now feels like its moving less. It also feels a little more sophisticated, ‘jazzy’, especially when we play the G chord at the end. There is a specific reason for this, take a look at the notes used in the chords below.

You’ll notice that the note C appears in all of the chords C major, F major & A minor, but does not appear in G major at all. That is the main reason why it feels slightly jazzy to have C as a bass note under the G major, when it feels quite natural with the other chords.

But, despite not being in the chord of G, the C bass note still feels good, it has quite a different feel than playing G and certainly sounds interesting without complicating things too much. It also brings a nice instance of tension and release, the tension is on the G chord with the bass playing a C, then it leads us back to the first chord C, which feels nice & complete, with the bass also playing a C (that’s the release).

Using bass notes that don’t appear in the chord can be an interesting way of spicing up a chord sequence but a word of warning! This technique only really works when used sparingly. In our previous example, when we kept the bass playing a C under our chord sequence, the C wasn’t part of the chord G, but this only happened for one chord. Using this method for every single chord in a track could create a sense of ‘instability’. But this is not a hard and fast rule, plenty of great songs use bass notes that don’t appear in the chord, so go ahead, have some fun and experiment for yourself.

. . .

Editor’s Note: This is an old article and things have moved on considerably since the original publication date 🙂

For more information head over to the Point Blank Music School website to learn the very latest about our school.

Сегодня нам на помощь спешит музыкальная теория: при помощи простого обыгрывания аккордов басовыми нотами мы превратим простой куплет в полноценный припев.

Шаг 1

Как создать басовую линию и разнообразить аранжировку, пишем басовую линию

Создать новую часть песни можно с помощью одной басовой линии. Поменяв ноту баса, мы создаем новые аккорды, которые делают звучание песни разнообразнее.

Чтобы понять принцип, возьмем простейшую последовательность аккордов – Cm (До минор) и Fm (Фа минор). В случае, если у вас есть доступ к MIDI-клавиатуре или любому другому клавишному инструменту, используйте левую руку для игры основного тона: ноты До (C) для аккорда До минор и ноты Фа (F) для аккорда Фа минор.

Шаг 2

Как создать басовую линию и разнообразить аранжировку, пишем басовую линию

Условимся, что первые восемь тактов повторения аккордов Cm и Fm – это куплет нашей композиции. Теперь скопируем их и вставим следом – это будет припев песни, с которым мы и будем работать.

Мы будем изменять только нижние ноты аккордов, а верхние три ноты останутся нетронутыми. Несмотря на это, новые звуки баса позволят нам создать совершенно новые аккорды. Первая нота До в нашем припеве останется на своем месте, а вот следующая за ней Фа будет изменена.

Шаг 3

Как создать басовую линию и разнообразить аранжировку, пишем басовую линию

Заменим Фа на Си-бемоль (Bb) в 10 такте. Оригинальный аккорд Фа минор состоит из звуков F-Ab-C, которые являются первой, третьей и пятой ступенью гаммы Фа минор (звуки F-G-Ab-Bb-C-Db-Eb). Добавление Си-бемоль превращает аккорд Fm в аккорд Fm11: если продолжать звукоряд, то Си-бемоль окажется 11 звуком в гамме Фа минор. Таким образом, аккорд Fm11 будет состоять из звуков Bb-Ab-C-F.

Шаг 4

Как создать басовую линию и разнообразить аранжировку, пишем басовую линию

Басовая нота в 11 такте сменится с C на Ab, что создаст аккорд Abmaj7, состоящий из звуков G-C-Eb, входящих в Cm, но с добавлением Ab в роли баса.

Точно таким же образом и по тому же принципу заменим звук F на звук Db в следующем такте, чтобы получить аккорд Dbmaj7.

Шаг 5

Как создать басовую линию и разнообразить аранжировку, пишем басовую линию

Басовый звук C в 13 такте сменится на Eb, что приведет к появлению аккорда Cm с басом Eb, который обычно записывается Cm/Eb. В 14 такте басовая F останется на своем месте, так как аккорд Fm будет прекрасно звучать в получающейся последовательности аккордов.

Как видите, у нас получается сначала нисходящая (такты с 9 по 12 включительно), а затем восходящая (такты с 13 по 16) басовая линия.

Шаг 6

Как создать басовую линию и разнообразить аранжировку, пишем басовую линию

Наконец, заменим басовую C в 15 такте на Ab, получив еще один аккорд Abmaj7, как и в 11 такте. В последнем такте нашего припева F уступит место звуку Db, как и в 12 такте, но в этот раз он будет взят на октаву выше.

Теперь послушаем куплет и припев нашей композиции:

А теперь обе части вместе с каким-нибудь битом:

Получившийся результат звучит более интересно с музыкальной точки зрения, а нисходяще-восходящая последовательность аккордов будет более благосклонно воспринята слушателями. Не бойтесь экспериментировать с басовыми линиями – это идет только на пользу музыке.

February 1 2013, 03:01

Category:

  • Музыка
  • Cancel

Что нужно, чтобы написать крутую басовую линию.

Все время проблемы с написанием баса? Возможно вы начали с бита, или, ,быть может с аккордов. Возможно вы уже начали что-то записывать, но это не в достаточной мере удовлетворены результатом и хотите перейти на следующий уровень.

Вообще говоря существует три основных аспекта при написании басовой партии: выбор тембра, сочинение и её запись. Игнорирование какого-либо из этих пунктов усложняет реализацию потенциала музыки, которую вы сочиняете.

  • Выбор тембра важен вне зависимости от музыкального направления в котором вы работаете. Даже если вы пишете первую EP подростковой панк-группы или сочиняете эпический оркестровый танцевальный саундтрек к фильму, вы не должны пропускать этот шаг. Заострите на этом внимание – уделите время тому,чтобы подумать о том, какой характер баса вам нужен. Он громкий, или приглушенный? Чистый или грязный? Тяжелый, или фанковый? Спокойный или пульсирующий? (P-bass or Stingray?) Пилообразный или прямоугольный? (имеется в виду форма волны (Sawtooth or squarewave?).
  • Сочинение басовой партии также является тем,что нужно делать осознанно. Не попадайтесь в ловушку довольствоваться чем-то простым просто ради наличия баса. Иногда простая басовая линия – правильный выбор, но не всегда. Не будьте ленивыми! Подумайте о ритмической составляющей, какой она должна быть (насколько синкопированна, насколько много в ней грува). Подумайте о мелодической составляющей, какой она должна быть (сколько нот, будет ли она консонирующей или диссонирующей). Каждая песня имеет свой собственный баланс, свою концепцию.
  • Непосредственная запись басовой линии так же важна как и предыдущие аспекты. Всем этим аспектам необходимо уделить пристальное внимание. Написание баса – это разница между «о, да!» и «пфф». Если песня требует живого баса, иногда лучше нанять хорошего сессионщика, особенно если песне требуется грув. Если же ваш бас синтовый (и изначально предполагался таким), то стоит вплотную заняться параметрами синтезатора и эффектов. Не просто рисуйте автоматизацию мышкой – возьмитесь за контроллеры и «сыграйте» её!

С обучением и практикой вы сможете полагаться на свой опыт и знания музыклаьной теории чтобы стабильно и последовательно создавать хорошие басовые партии.

С опытом приходит умение слышать в голове основные черты будущей басовой линии – длину и грув, гармонию и мелодическую составляющую. Это навык, позволяющий сказать «о,эта песня будет звучать *так*, ей нужна *такая* басовая партия». Это требует наличия широкого музыкального вкуса и знаний и позволяет опираться на музыкальный контекст.

Знание музыкальной теории приходит тогда, когда приходит время выбирать отдельные ноты. Это навык умения работать в гармоническом контексте песни (что есть аккорды, мелодический язык песни и т.д.) и использовать это чтобы понять какие ноты подойдут и будут идеальной поддержкой вашей музыке.

(автор: Kim Lajoie)

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