The Gary Willis Approach – Bass Lesson(Part 1)
For more free bass lessons visit – www.scottsbasslessons.com There you’ll find loads of free video lessons covering bass soloing, improvisation, walking bass, grooves etc. Gary Willis has to be one of the most virtuosic, original and unique sounding bass players of the last twenty years. From his early work with Wayne Shorter, the groundbreaking fusion band Tribal tech through to his more recent projects like Triphastic, his bass playing is never less than breathtaking. I was lucky enough to study with him in Barcelona for just over the duration of a year, an experience I will never forget! Among all the lessons I took with Gary there was one that particularly stood out. In fact it was from this very lesson that all my further lessons with him seemed to be directly connected to. It was almost the foundation of my study with him. This specific lesson covered the superimposition of major pentatonic scales on top of minor chords and other more complex chord sequences from the jazz standard repertoire. Not only was this eye opening for me, but it also gave me a great insight into why Gary Willis sounds so unique and is instantly recognizable in his soloistic approach. The superimposition of major pentatonic scales within a soloing environment is a large contributing factor to the ‘Gary Willis’ sound. If this is something you want to be able to access and use in your own improvisations I suggest started with static minor chord vamps to begin with, and then later on when you …
Reader Comments
pause at 10:28
Thank You,Great Master!
Pretty cool stuff…definitely a new way to think of things.
I’m left handed but learned to play right handed. If you want to learn left-handed it’s not much different. It’s the same technique on different hands as far as I’m concerned.
learn to play righthanded masterrace
Nice gloves and short scale bass. Is this guy allergic to nickel or WTF?
Not sure but they may be so his hand will slide along the bass neck easier.
Hello!
As part of my studies I have been tasked to create ThinkSpanner online (Link in channel)
ThinkSpanner is almost finished, and I need to populate it with content. Can I link to your current content using the YouTube API? This means they wont be re-uploaded but instead, all views go directly to your channel!
Thanks
Paul – ThinkSpanner
Is this the aeolian mode basically ?
Absolutely great to discover your lessons…After nearly 40 years of leggin’ it,makin’ it up as i went along(30 of those as a pro)i now can see the theory of what my ears were telling me!You are a wonderful teacher and it is a real joy to be back in school and finally learn my craft from somebody who has thought it through in so many ways!
God man!
What is the deal with the gloves?
This video has really inspired me. I’ve been kind of discouraged as of late, but this really helped kick my ass back into gear. Thanks a lot. Really.
As far as scales and harmonics go, it’s all good to learn them on paper. However very few people cover the philosophy and state of mind needed to create and perform well. If I’m in sort of a deep calm state, anything I do will sound good (well almost). It’s as if I get more time to think and feel what I want the next note to be, even though I might be at the same BPM and time signature.
Or get a regular bass, switch the nut around and do it Jimi Hendrix style!
I award this the most helpful basslesson I’ve ever had!
no,you just need a left hand bass
Thank you so much!!! Now I’ve got a lot to practise, keep up the good work!
thanks im learning so much from you.
i did! thanks!
its on his website. check it out
Very inspiring, both your words and music!
why was it so shit?
9:15 thank me later