Bass: How to Choose the Right Notes for Each Chord

The bass is the bridge between harmony and rhythm. A good bass line doesn’t need a lot of notes—it needs the right notes at the right moment.

The note hierarchy

• Root: the note that gives the chord its name. Playing it on beat 1 of the measure makes the harmony clear.
• 5th: seven half steps above the root. It’s stable and works with almost anything; on the fretboard it sits on the next string up, two frets higher.
• 3rd: tells you whether the chord is major or minor. Use it on purpose—it’s the note with the most character.
• Passing tones: they get you to the next chord. A note a half step away from the next root creates tension that resolves on its own.

A three-step method

1. Play just the roots in quarter notes over the progression.
2. Alternate between the root and the 5th.
3. On the last beat of each chord, swap that note for a chromatic approach to the next root.

With those three steps, you’ve got the foundation of most rock, pop, and funk bass lines.