Serious Electric Bass (Contemporary Bass Series) (Paperback)

~ Joel di Bartolo (Author), Aaron Stang (Author) "Changing strings?..." (more)
Key Phrases: Ionian Dorian, Phrygian Lydian, Mixolydian Aeolian (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Bass basics, major scales and modes, harmonic and melodic minor scales and modes, arpeggio patterns and symmetric scales (whole tone and diminished). Serious Electric Bass is a definitive, comprehensive, user-friendly guide for electric bassists of all levels. 279 pages.

From the Publisher

Bass basics, major scales and modes, harmonic and melodic minor scales and modes, arpeggio patterns and symmetric scales (whole tone and diminished). ^Serious Electric Bass} is a definitive, comprehensive, user-friendly guide for electric bassists of all levels. 279 pages.

Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Warner Bros Pubns (March 3, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576238830
• ISBN-13: 978-1576238837
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 9.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #538,566 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another powerful tool - truly for SERIOUS bass players., February 10, 2003

By	"mlessey" (Maracas Valley, Trinidad and Tobago.) - See all my reviews

This book is packed with endless info on the subject - scales and chords. By practicing the excercises in it, one can begin developing a good ear and understand why basslines of some songs are played the way they are.

In fact, this book is teaching me that there are many contemporary songs that are done in modes of common scales. I didn't even know such a thing existed!

Another thing is that you get a great appreciation for the neck and the note values along it by using this book in practice.

You would have to be able to sight-read for this book though, since tab is not used.

The first few sections - particularly the part on setting up and adjusting your bass - are invaluable, as they offer clear instructions that demystify the fear of 'DIY' on your bass.

The only problem I had was that one of the pages (I think it was p.55) was double-printed, so the page before it was not there. Otherwise, this book is an important investment for players who want to understand the relationships between chords and to develop their ear.

ML

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The definitive book about scales and chords, September 5, 2000

By	richard plat (Holland) - See all my reviews

I like this book very much. It filled all the gaps in my knowledge about scales and chords. Almost every existing scale in there. And not only the notes, also every chord you can play it with, several different fingerings, arpeggios, tetrachords, 2-oktave fingerings, and so on. It's a book you keep using for a long time.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Serious problems, August 13, 2007

By	THX1138b (NY USA) - See all my reviews

I bought the book thinking it was advanced enough that I could continue to use it as I progressed. That has not turned out to be so.

There are typographical errors. The worst is on page 50, unlucky Arpeggio Exercise 13. The triads are so consistatnly mis-labeled that I can only think that the example completely missed the copy editor. For example, D is twice shown with F-natural, E-flat is shown with a B-natural. There are others.

I have not gone through the book page by page looking for problems, but this one is bad enough that it has undermined my faith in the book as a whole.

I found the author's approach unnecessarily complex at times. For example, the introduction of the modes of the melodic minor scale show an example of the first mode with key signature for A flat, but the example shows a scale beginning on F. We are not explicitly told the example is F. This is understandably confusing on your first pass through the example till you work out what's going on. Examples of modes are frequently given showing the first mode starting on the first note of the scale, second mode on the second, etc. and specifically annotating the flatted notes. Then in a subsequent example, show how the modes might appear with a given key signature.


I fail to see the usefulness of the "practice this exercise in _every_ key" mentality. It is a carry over from long-standing piano practice and it's effectiveness might be questioned here. With sections of 4 or 5 pages, each with 6 to 8 exercises per page we are told to practice every one in every key. For guitar it makes more sense to practice many exercises in both open and closed positions. Reserve the "in every key" requirement for a few chosen exercises and it is more likely to be taken seriously and have more benefit.

How effective is it to have page after page of every possible fingering pattern of each mode over two octives, including fingerings on one string? Or to show the modes in every key if you can extrapolate from one or two keys? It begins to look like padding.

If there is an upside, it is that there are many exercises in the book (if you can trust the print or build the acumen to spot the errors) so you can take your pick. If you want fingering diagrams, there are plenty of those too.

The approach of presenting so much of the basics in the first position before moving on is a sound idea. Gaining that foundation is half the battle and after that much of the mechanics fall easily into place.

The book does not go into theory beyond the basics. It's about fretboard mechanics. That is not an unsound approach, but it can (and has) been done effectively in half as many pages.

Thankfully, there is no tab. The book will sharpen your sight-reading skills.

There is also a good section on set-up and adjustment in the introduction that you don't find in many books of this type.

But for me, the book sacrifices clarity and concision for unnecessary repetition and detail. The typos, if few, are serious. The disadvantages far our way the advantages.