No__76___Ideas For Bass Runs and Fills

[Peter Anderson]

These postings will, hopefully, give you some ideas for bass runs and fills.

Please note that you don't have to use all of them in one piece of music.   They are suggestions to add colour and variety to your music playing.    Don't forget, with all these, your own ear must be the judge as to whether the pattern fits the piece that you are playing.


The scores are all shown as a simple melody with chord symbols, but showing the bass notes on a lower stave.

To view and/or print this out as a pdf, please click on this link:

Bass Run & Fill No 1


Notice:
1.          Bar 2 shows a fill as you move from the tonic chord (in this case G major) to the sub-dominant (C major)

2.          Bar 4 shows a run down the bass scale as you move from the dominant 7 chord back towards the tonic chord of G major.

3.          Bar 8 shows a fill, all within the tonic chord (G major), moving back to the start of the line.

4.          Though these are printed in the key of G major, you can use the principle to incorporate them in any other key.

Peter

[Peter Anderson]

Here is a second example of some different patterns.

Click this link to open  the pdf, which you can either view in a separate screen or print out:

Bass Run & Fill No2


1.          In bars 1 & 2 the bass follows this pattern:

      Tonic (G) ,     major 7th (F#),       6th (E),      dominant (D)

2.         In bars 3 & 4 there is an exciting structure which goes from G, through G# to A, using the diminished chord to change the fundamental of the G major chord to G#, without changing the other notes of that chord.

3.         In bar 5 we use Am, but this could also be a C6.

4.         In bars 6 to 8, we use the combination of G major, E minor, A minor, D7, G major, which comes straight from the Circle of Fifths.

5.         Bar 8 uses the same fill as Bass Run No1

Peter

[Peter Anderson]

Here is a third example of bass run, so first click this link to open the pdf for Bass Run No3.    You can open it in a new window or print it out:

Bass Run & Fill No3


Bass Run No 3  demonstrates some structures in a minor key.

1.          Bars 1 & 2 echo what will be a well known pattern of sound.     Sometimes this can be varied by replacing the Eb with an E.

2.          Bars 5 & 6 replace an almost expected  C minor  with an  Eb.  This can be further enhanced with an Eb6.

Don't forget, with all these, your own ear must be the judge as to whether the pattern fits the piece that you are playing.

Peter

[Peter Anderson]

Would any one else like to suggest or recommend other ideas for Bass Runs and Fills, please?

Do feel free to add them here with a Reply.

Alternatively send us a disk with you playing them!

Peter