Bassline (also known as abass line orbass part) is the term used in many styles ofmusic, such asblues,jazz,funk,dub andelectronic,traditional, andclassical music, for the low-pitchedinstrumental part or line played (in jazz and some forms of popular music) by arhythm section instrument such as theelectric bass,double bass,cello,tuba or keyboard (piano,Hammond organ, electric organ, orsynthesizer).
In unaccompanied solo performance, basslines may simply be played in the lowerregister of any instrument whilemelody and/or furtheraccompaniment is provided in the middle or upper register. In solo music for piano and pipe organ, these instruments have an excellent lower register that can be used to play a deep bassline. On organs, the bass line is typically played using thepedal keyboard and massive 16' and 32' bass pipes.
Basslines inpopular music often use"riffs" or "grooves", which are usually simple, appealing musical motifs or phrases that are repeated, with variation, throughout the song. "The bass differs from other voices because of the particular role it plays in supporting and defining harmonic motion. It does so at levels ranging from immediate, chord-by-chord events to the larger harmonic organization of a [sic] entire work."[1]
Bassline riffs usually (but not always) emphasize the chord tones of each chord (usually the root note, the third note, or the fifth note), which helps to define a song's key. Basslines align orsyncopate with the drums. Other rhythm instruments join in to create a more interesting rhythmic variations.The type of rhythmic pulse used in basslines varies widely in different types of music. Inswing jazz andjump blues, basslines are often created from a continuous sequence of quarter notes in a mostly scalar, stepwise or arpeggio-based part called a "walking bass line". InLatin,salsa music,jazz fusion,reggae,electronica, and some types ofrock andmetal, basslines may be very rhythmically complex andsyncopated. In bluegrass and traditional country music, basslines often emphasize the root and fifth of each chord.
Though basslines may be played by many different types ofinstruments and in a broad musicalrange, they are generally played onbass instruments and in the range roughly at least anoctave and a half belowmiddle C (roughly the range of thebass clef). Inclassical music such as string quartets and symphonies, basslines play the same harmonic and rhythmic role; however, they are usually referred to as the "bass voice" or the "bass part".
Most popular musical ensembles include an instrument capable of playing bass notes. In the 1890s, atuba was often used. From the 1920s to the 1940s, most popular music groups used thedouble bass as the bass instrument. Starting in the 1950s, thebass guitar began to replace the double bass in most types of popular music, such as rock and roll, blues, and folk. The bass guitar was easier to transport and, given that it uses magnetic pickups, easier to amplify to loud stage volumes without the risk ofaudio feedback, a common problem with the amplified double bass. By the 1970s and 1980s, the electric bass was used in most rock bands andjazz fusion groups. The double bass was still used in some types of popular music that recreated styles from the 1940s and 1950s such asjazz (especially swing andbebop), traditional 1950sblues,jump blues,country, androckabilly.
In some popular music bands, keyboard instruments are used to play the bass line. Inorgan trios, for example, aHammond organ player performs the basslines using the organ'spedal keyboard. In some types of popular music, such aship-hop orhouse music, the bass lines are played usingbass synthesizers, sequencers, or electro-acoustically modeled samples of basslines.
Basslines are important in many forms ofdance andelectronic music, such aselectro,drum and bass,dubstep, and most forms ofhouse andtrance. In these genres, basslines are almost always performed onsynthesizers, either physical, such as theMinimoog and theRoland TB-303, orvirtual, such asSytrus andZynAddSubFX. Inhip-hop, producerRick Rubin popularized the technique of creating basslines by lengthening the bass drum decay of theTR-808 drum machine and tuning it to different pitches.[2]
Chinese orchestras use the zhōng ruǎn (中阮) and dà ruǎn (大阮) for creating basslines. Other, less common bass instruments are the lā ruǎn (拉阮), dī yīn gé hú (低音革胡), and da dī hú (大低胡) developed during the 1930s.[citation needed] Russianbalalaika orchestra use bass balalaika and contrabass balalaika.
Australia's indigenous music and someWorld music that is influenced by Australian music usesdidjeridus for basslines.[citation needed]
Inclassical music, the bassline is always written out for the performers inmusical notation. Inorchestral repertoire, the basslines are played by thedouble basses andcellos in thestring section, bybassoons,contrabassoons, andbass clarinets in the woodwinds and bybass trombones,tubas and a variety of other low brass instruments. In symphonies from the Classical period, a single bassline was often written for the cellos and basses; however, since the bass is atransposing instrument, and it is notated an octave higher than it sounds, when cellos and basses play the same bassline, the line is performed in octaves, with the basses an octave below the cellos. By the end of the Classical period, with Beethoven's symphonies, cellos and double basses were often given separate parts. In general, the more complex passages and rapid note sequences are given to the cellos, while the basses play a simpler bassline. Thetimpani (or kettledrums) also play a role in orchestral basslines, albeit confined in 17th and early 18th century works to a few notes, often the tonic and the dominant below it. In a small number of symphonies, thepipe organ is used to play basslines.
Inchamber music, the bassline is played by the cello in string quartets and the bassoon in wind chamber music. In some larger chamber music works, both a cello and a double bass are used to play the bassline. In a Baroque era (c. 1600–1750) piece accompanied bybasso continuo, the accompanying musicians would include a chordal instrument (e.g.,harpsichord,pipe organ orlute) and a number of bass instruments might perform the same bassline, such as the cello,viol, double bass,theorbo,serpent (an early wind instrument), and, if an organist was present, the lower manual of the organ and the low-pitchedpedal keyboard. In 2000s-era performances of Baroque music, the basso continuo is typically performed by just two instruments: a chordal instrument and one bass instrument (often harpsichord and cello).
[The bass part is] the groundwork or foundation upon which all musical composition is to be erected.
— Christopher Simpson 1667:19[3]
[The bass part is] the base and foundation of the other parts, since one builds them upon it.
— Charles Masson 1669:31[3]
[The bass part is] the foundation of harmony.
— Gioseffo Zarlino 1561:239, 1558:179[3]
In many genres of moderntraditional music (ranging fromfolk rock to blues) and popular music (ranging from rock and pop to reggae to funk), the bassline is generally played by anelectric bass player. Inrockabilly,psychobilly, traditional blues andbluegrass music, the bassline is played by adouble bass player. The bassline uses low notes that provide a rhythm while simultaneously setting out the foundation of thechord progression. The bassline bridges the gap between the rhythmic part played by the drummer and the melodic lines played by thelead guitarist and the chordal parts played by therhythm guitarist and/or keyboard player. In most traditional and popular music styles, the bass player is expected to be able toimprovise a bassline which they base in thechord progression of a song. When a bassist is playing acover song, they may play the bassline that was originally used on the recording. Asession bassist playing in a music studio is expected to be able to read a bassline written inmusical notation. Bass players also performfills in between the phrases of the vocal melody, and they may also performbass runs or bass breaks, which are short solo sections. Rhythmic variations by the bass, such as the introduction of a syncopated figure can dramatically change the feel of a song, even for a simple groove.
"In any style, the bass's role in thegroove is the same: to keep time and to outline the tonality. When developing bass lines, these two things should always be your goal"[4]
[One] may view in it [(the bass part)] all the other parts in their original essence.Thomas Campion 1967:327[3]
Awalking bass is a style of bass accompaniment or line, common inBaroque music (1600–1750) and 20th centuryjazz,blues androckabilly, which creates a feeling of regular quarter note movement, akin to the regular alternation of feet whilewalking.[5][6] Walking basslines generally consist ofunsyncopatednotes of equal value, usuallyquarter notes (known in jazz as a "four feel"). Walking basslines use a mixture ofscale tones,arpeggios, chromatic runs, andpassing tones to outline thechord progression of a song or tune, often with a melodic shape that alternately rises and falls in pitch over several bars. To add variety to a walking bassline, bassists periodically interpolate various fills, such as playing scale or arpeggio fragments in swung eighth notes, plucking muted percussive grace notes (either one grace note or a "raked" sequence of two or three grace notes), or holding notes for two, three, or four beats. Some songs lend themselves to another type of variation: thepedal point, in which the bassist holds or repeats a single note (often the tonic or the dominant) under the chord changes.
Walking basslines are usually performed on thedouble bass or theelectric bass, but they can also be performed using the low register of apiano,Hammond organ,tuba or other instruments. They can also be sung, as is done by some a capella vocal groups. While walking bass lines are most commonly associated with jazz and blues, they are also used inrock,rockabilly,ska,R&B,gospel,Latin,country, and many other genres.[7]
Walking bass in thepedal keyboard part of Baroque organ music (J.S. Bach'sNun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 659, from theGreat Eighteen Chorale Preludes):
Other walking bass lines can be heard in the opening movements ofJoseph Haydn'sSymphony No. 22 (nicknamed "The Philosopher"),Anton Bruckner'sSymphony No. 5 andEdward Elgar'sSymphony No. 1.
Walking bass often alternates quarter notes:
giving rise to the term.
Manyboogie-woogie basslines are walking bass lines:
Walking bass often moves in stepwise (scalar) motion to successivechord roots, such as often incountry music:
In this example, the last two quarter notes of the second measure, D and E, "walk" up from the first quarter note in that measure, C, to the first note of the third measure, F (C and F are the roots of the chords in the first through second and third through fourth measures, respectively).
In both cases, "walking" refers both to the steady duple rhythm (one step after the other) and to the strong directional motion created;[7] in the examples above, from C to F and back in the second, and from root to seventh and back in the first.
Inbebop jazz, the walking bass has a stabilising effect, offsetting and providing a foil to the complexity of the improvised melodic lines, for example inSonny Rollins’“Blue Seven”.
Abass run (or "bass break") is a shortinstrumental break orfill in which thebass instrument (such as anelectric bass or adouble bass) or instruments (in the case of a marching band) and the bassline are given the forefront.[8] The bass part for a bass run often differs from the usual bassaccompaniment style, in terms of the register,timbre, or melodic style that is used, or the number of notes per beat which are played.
A bass run may be composed by the performer or by anarranger prior to a performance, or it may beimprovised onstage by the performer using scales, arpeggios, and standardlicks andriffs. In some cases, a bass run may incorporate a display ofvirtuoso techniques such as rapid passages or high notes. During a bass run, the main vocal ormelody line usually stops, and in some cases, thepercussion ordrums may also stop. The technique originated in themarches of the "Sousa school", though its resemblance tocall and response techniques familiar toAfrican American musicians indicates an earlier origin.[8]
In arock song in which the bassline consists of low-pitched quarter notes played on the electric bass, a bass run may consist of a rapid sequence of sixteenth notes in a higher register, or of a melodicriff played in a higher register. In some cases, the bassist will select a "brighter"-sounding pickup or increase the treble response of the instrument for a bass run, so that it will be easier to hear.
In aheavy metal song where the bassist was ordinarily playing low notes without overdrive to accompany, for a solo, they may turn on afuzz bass pedal and use awah pedal to create a more pronounced tone (an approach used byCliff Burton), and then play an upper register riff or scale run. Someshred guitar-style bassists may do two-handedtapping during a bass solo (e.g.,Billy Sheehan).
In apop song in which the bassline consists of notes plucked on the electric bass, a bass run may consist of several bars of percussiveslapping and popping. Bass solos and guitar solos are rare in pop. In the rare cases that instrumental solos occur in pop, they are often played bysynthesizer or, in some bands, bysaxophone.
In aEDM,house,dubstep,grime, andrelated genres,synthesiser bass is used (along withkickdrums).
In afunk song in which the bassline already consists of percussive slapping and popping, a bass run may consist of a virtuosic display of rapid slapping and popping techniques combined with techniques such as glissando, note-bending, and harmonics.
In ajump blues tune in which the bassline consists of low-pitched quarter notes played on the double bass in a scalar walking bass style, a bass run may consist of a bar of swung eighth notes played using a percussive slap bass style, in which the right hand strikes the strings against the fingerboard.
In aswing tune in which the bassline consists of low-pitched quarter notes played on the double bass in a scalar walking bass style, a bass run may consist of a descending chromatic scale played in a higher register.
In abluegrass tune in which the bassline consists of low-pitched quarter notes played on the double bass on the root and fifth of eachchord on beats one and three (of a 4/4 tune), a bass run may consist of a walking bass line played for several bars.
In apsychobilly band, a bass solo will often consist of a virtuosic display of triple and quadruple slaps, creating a percussive, drum solo-like sound.
In amarching band, a bass run may consist of a several bar unaccompanied passage composed for the tubas and sousaphones which displays either rapid passages of notes or higher-register techniques. In New Orleans jazz, the tuba may provide a walking bass line similar to that of the double bass.
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