Unlock your fretboard with one simple pattern.
Beginner bassists
If you’re comfortable with a few fundamentals, this class will show you how to build basslines that sound great right away.
7 days
Eliana will guide you through 7 days of step-by-step instruction with daily practice plans and assessments.
One shape, unlimited groove
By the end of this class, the box will be your greatest tool for playing with any song that comes your way.
Take the next step
Once you've mastered this class, keep learning with more Challenges and guided Learning Pathways.
Learning the box will give you an unshakeable bass foundation that'll serve you from simple songs to complex progressions.

Stay focused with this step-by-step learning program designed by our expert team of music educators.
In this 7‑day Challenge, Eliana will take you through the box shape step by step. From mapping your fretboard to moving easily through chord progressions, this simple shape will become your go‑to tool for building basslines and unlocking higher‑level playing.

As a bass player, you’re responsible for both the rhythm and the harmony. Fortunately, Eliana’s got the cheat code to tackle both roles with ease: the box.
To kick off the Challenge, Eliana will guide you through the fundamentals of the box and show you how to spice it up with color notes.

Now that you’ve got your full box built, Eliana will show you the key to seamlessly moving your box around quickly: leading with your index finger.
Once your technique is dialed in, you’ll apply your new skills over a Daft Punk-inspired track.

Next, you’ll shift from the E string to the A string to unlock even more sonic options.
This is a key step toward fretboard freedom. Once you learn the box on these two string sets, you'll be ready to navigate any progression that comes your way.
For your final lesson of the Challenge, Eliana will show you how to combine fretboard maps and unleash the full musical potential of the box.
Then, you'll put those new bass biceps to work with a musical workout that you can revisit until you're a true box master.
To cap off the course, you'll take what you learned and apply it in a purely musical context with three original tracks by Eliana.
Days 1-2. What's in the box?
Kick off the class by building your full E-string box shape.
Day 1. What is the box?
In this first lesson, you’ll start building your box shape with the root, 5th, and octave. With just these three notes, you’ll be able to start playing along to songs right away.
Day 2. Building out the box
Next, Eliana will guide you in adding the 4th and b7th to your box, giving your playing more depth and color. You’ll also pick up tips to shed physical tension so you can groove longer and stronger.
Day 3. Moving the box around
Your box is built, and it yearns for the open road. Time to learn how to shift it around your fretboard.
The most useful thing about the box is its movable nature – the intervals remain the same even when we change locations. This is what allows you to follow chord changes seamlessly. In this lesson, Eliana will guide you through exercises to help you get comfortable with the box in different positions.
Days 4-5.
You’ve learned how to move your box horizontally on one string. Now we'll shift to a whole new string set.
Day 4. Building out the A-string box
In Day 4, you’ll shift from the E string to the A string. The best part? The box stays the exact same and you get access to even more tones. The same notes have a different tone depending on where you play them on the fretboard.
Day 5. Below the A-string box
Building off of Day 4, you’ll take a trip down low to find two extra notes below the root: the 5th and the colorful 6th. These notes add momentum while keeping your feel deep and bassy. Plus, grabbing these notes gives you opportunities to work on playing more efficiently with the finger roll.
Days 6-7
With both of your boxes built, you’ll get some experience applying them musically.
At this point in the challenge, you'll have all the tools you need to play pretty much any song that comes your way. In this final lesson, you’ll work through a progression inspired by The Four Tops. You’ll focus on bringing personality to the bassline by adding ornaments like hammer-ons, finger rolls, and anticipation to your boxes.
Day 7. Workout
To cap off the class, Eliana’s got a box-tastic workout that will help you build physical and mental endurance by combining positions across the neck.
You now have the box mastery to explore your creativity freely, so the end of the jam will be a choose-your-own adventure where you can bring in fills from exercises and just have fun making these basslines uniquely your own.
Performances
Eliana has written some killer tracks for you to put in real-time box practice with. You’ll get experience with a variety of genres and styles inspired by icons like Tears for Fears and Curtis Mayfield, not to mention a classic Motown-inspired track.
FULL REFUND, NO QUESTIONS ASKED
We’re so confident that we can improve your playing that we’re underwriting your membership with a 60-day satisfaction guarantee.

Your Instructor
Eliana is a master bassist who's here to help you groove smarter. In her 7‑day Challenge, she’ll show you how one simple shape can unlock your fretboard.
Explore LessonsAll-inclusive access to every course.
Are you a guitar, bass or piano player who feels like you haven’t made progress in a few months… years… or even decades?
You’re probably stuck in what’s called the ‘intermediate plateau’. This is very common and can be very frustrating.
What’s the cause? Well, it’s pretty easy to learn the basics on any instrument. Learn a few chords and you can play hundreds of other songs. Learn a couple of scales and you can play some lead.
But what then? Triads? Modes? Arpeggios? The phrygian scale?!
Without a clear plan and learning system you fall back to playing the same things over and over again. Or you bounce around free lessons online but nothing seems to stick. It’s a recipe for a lot of practice without much progress.
That’s where Pickup Music can help. We specialize in taking players stuck in a rut and turning them into advanced musicians.
We do this through Learning Pathways that take you on a step-by-step journey towards mastery. We give you a highly structured system that shows you exactly what to work on each week to make serious progress.
These Learning Pathways take the guesswork out of your practice routine. You are guided through a proven grade-by-grade system with daily lessons, play-along practice exercises and interactive workouts.
But it’s not all about theory. We apply everything you learn to real music. That’s why every grade of our Learning Pathways build up to performing a song with a live backing band. This simulates what it’s like to play a real gig, with real musicians. It’s the absolute best way to learn.
You can also get 1-on-1 video feedback on your playing from our expert coaches and can attend weekly live lessons. This personal feedback makes Pickup Music the closest thing to taking in-person lessons, but at a fraction of the cost.
So does this method actually work? Will you see results in your playing?
The most common thing we hear from new members is that they’ve made more progress with Pickup Music in a few months than in years of teaching themselves. As one member recently told us, “I'm finally seeing progress for the first time in many years”.
Want to hear about other members’ experiences with us? Read our independent Trustpilot reviews.
Private music lessons cost about $50 per lesson or $2,600 a year.
Enrolling in a music academy costs about $40,000 a year.
A Pickup Music membership costs just $180 for the whole year. That works out to 50 cents a day!
But it’s not just about the money. It’s about not wasting your precious time. It’s about making actual progress as a musician.
By following our proven Learning Pathway system, you will eliminate the guesswork so you know exactly what you need to focus on each day and week to make lasting progress as a musician.
Most online music lesson sites are good at teaching one-off songs. Or they get super famous artist to record one-hour video lessons talking at length about their particular style and career.
The problem is that these 'infotainment' approaches don't stick. They don’t help you to actually get better as a musician. You can waste a lot of time bouncing around these types of unconnected, one-off lessons.
Pickup Music takes a different approach. We give you a highly structured system that shows you exactly what to work on each week to make serious progress. We take you beyond the basics through a step-by-step journey towards mastery.
By following a Pickup Music Learning Pathway, you are getting the most guided way to learn music. Over 6 grades, you are taken through daily lessons and practice exercises that carefully explain what’s going on behind the music.
Each grade then builds up to song performances that apply everything you’ve learned with a live backing band. These challenges - where we simulate what it’s like to play a real gig, with real musicians - is the absolute best way to learn.
You can also get 1-on-1 video feedback on your playing and weekly live lessons. This personal feedback makes Pickup Music the closest thing to taking in-person lessons, but at a fraction of the cost.
Want to hear about other members’ experiences with us? Read our independent Trustpilot reviews.
Everything on Pickup Music is designed to be taken on-demand and at your own pace. There are no deadlines, so you can work at your own speed. You can stay on a topic until you really understand it before you move on.
While we divide our Learning Pathways into ‘days’ - this is a suggestion only. Some learners might take a few days in one sitting, while others will spend a few sessions on a single day. You can go at the pace that feels most comfortable to you.
Canceling is easy. It’s just a click of a button on your account page.
You won't be charged anything if you cancel during your free trial. We also send you a reminder before your trial ends so you don’t accidentally forget about it.
If you cancel after your trial, you won't be billed again at your next billing cycle. Your membership will remain active until it expires on the day it was originally set to renew.
In addition to the free trial, we also offer a 60-day money back guarantee for first time customers who sign up via our website. If you’re not satisfied with your progress in the first 60 days of your membership, we will give you your money back - no questions asked.