Mike's Master Classes

Harmony Masterclass

Walking Bass and Soloing Line Construction

Drew Gress·
5.0 (2 reviews)·INTERMEDIATE·1 lesson·1h 5m of video

About this masterclass

Bassist Drew Gress uses the standard Autumn Leaves to show how to construct walking bass lines and solo lines that go beyond stepwise motion and comfortable "boxy" fingering patterns. Along the way he digs into clarity — of tone, time, and note choice — and how to make sure your ideas actually reach the listener.

What's covered

  • Breaking away from typical, default walking bass lines
  • Early and delayed resolutions
  • Working with listener expectations
  • Harmonization and playing with clarity
  • Fast tempos and staying relaxed
  • Practicing — including Drew's habit of taping yourself and listening back to test whether the song form comes across
  • Ideas for soloing over half-diminished chords and the ii–V7–i progression

While the demonstrations are on bass, the line-construction and clarity concepts apply just as well to soloists and chordal players.

Lessons in this masterclass

Lessons

  • 1Walking Bass and Soloing Line Construction1h 5m

Reviews & Ratings

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Agustin Bernal
8/4/2016

Great masterclass from a true great bassist, composer, improviser and human being. Drew has been an inspiration for me all my life and to see him play and teach is a dream come true. I have purchased his other two classes and enjoyed them as wellHighly recommended!!!

Joseph Gretz
1/24/2015

I got a lot out of this masterclass. It follows the description very well, and my biggest take away was his description of how to play with clarity and intent. <br /> <br /> IMHO, getting the opportunity to hear Drew improvise on Autumn Leaves during the intro is worth the price of admission alone. <br /> <br /> I think there is something here for bassists of all levels, but players with a solid grasp of music theory will benefit the most.

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About the instructor

Drew Gress →
Bassist/composer Drew Gress performs extensively with artists on the cutting edge of contemporary improvised music. His latest project as a leader, 7 BLACK BUTTERFLIES (Premonition Records), features 9 of Drew&sup1;s newest original compositions and was released in MAY 2005. This was the follow up to 2001's SPIN & DRIFT, which received widespread critical acclaim and also featured Drew's pedal-steel guitar playing. He also leads the quartet Jagged Sky; their debut recording, HEYDAY(Soul Note) was released in 1998 and is now considered somewhat of an underground classic. Previously, he was a founding member of the cooperative quartet Joint Venture, producing three albums in the early 1990s for Enja: Joint Venture, Ways, and Mirrors. When Drew is not leading his own ensembles, he can be heard within those of Ralph Alessi, Tim Berne, Uri Caine, Gerald Cleaver, Ravi Coltrane, Marc Copland, Fred Hersch, John Hollenbeck, Tony Malaby, and Mat Maneri.(In a previous musical life, he grounded the performances of Buddy Hackett, Phyllis Diller, Zoot Sims, Cab Calloway, and Pia Zadora). Drew has toured North, South, and Central America, Europe, and Asia, and has served as Artist-in-Residence at St. Petersburg Conservatory in Russia and at the University of Colorado-Boulder. The Gaurdian selected a concert given by his Spin & Drift quartet as London's Best Jazz Concert for 2002, and in the same year he received a SESAC Composer's Award; this in addition to previous grants from Chamber Music America, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Meet the Composer. He currently resides in New York.