Behringer Bass Guitar PACK BT108BPK-PB503-BK User Manual

ULTRABASS

BASS GUITAR PACK

Shuffle

If you play a piece of music with a triplet feel (e.g. in eighth triplets) and you leave out the second note in each triplet (e.g. eighth-note

rest), the result is a driving, lively rhythmwhat is known as a ternary rhythm, or shuffle.

By comparison, the binary rhythm (without triplets) sounds somewhat more static and less vibrant. Rhythm example 3 shows this

playing style in a few passages, and you can find a shuffle blues in the chapter titled EXAMPLES OF MUSICAL STYLES.

SCALES

Scales are simply sequences of individual notes that (in most cases) can be assigned to a certain key. They can be used to

accompany pieces of music written in the respective key. Probably the best-known scales are called the major scale and the

minor scale. The difference between these scales depends on the order of half-tone and whole-tone steps, which is what

produces the individual characters of the scales.
Explanation:
A half-tone step is the shift from one fret to the next fret up (or the next fret down): e.g. the shift from E (D string, 2

fret) to F

(D string, 3

fret) or vice versa. This interval is known as a minor second.

A whole-tone step, on the other hand, describes the shift from one fret to the next-but-one fret up (or down): e.g. the shift from

F (D string, 3

fret) to G (D string, 5

fret) or vice versa. This interval is known as a major second.

Intervals

At this point we would like to explain what intervals are, so that you dont have any difficulties with certain terms in the chapters that

follow. An interval indicates the difference in pitch between one note and another. There are many different intervals, as there are

also many different notes. The following illustration always shows the interval between the individual note and the keynote C

(tonic).

Major and minor

What is the actual difference between a major scale and a minor scale? The deciding factor is the interval between the first note

(keynote) and the third note (third) in the scale. If this interval equals four half-tone steps (or two whole-tone steps), it is called a

major third. This is characteristic of a major scale, which, as a rule, has a bright, happy expression. If the interval consists of only

three half-tone steps (or one half-tone and one whole-tone step), however, it is what is called a minor third, which is characteristic

of a minor scale. Minor scales generally sound more melancholy and sadder than major scales.

The major scale

The following illustration shows you the fingering diagram for the C major scale. This scale consists of a series of seven

consecutive notes, with the scale beginning again one octave higher on the eighth note (C): C - D - E - F - G - A - B - (C). What is

characteristic of the major scale is that the half-tone steps are from the 3

to the 4

notes (E to F) and from the 7

to the 8

notes

(B to (C)). The Roman numerals in all the following fingering diagrams are for orientation purposes and indicate the fret you are

playing at. In the following example the fret indicated is the 7

(VII).