Late beginner bassists
If you can play basic basslines but want to lock in with the drums and tighten your timing, this class will help you get there.
7 days
Nicole will guide you through 7 days of step-by-step instruction with daily practice plans and assessments.
Tighten your timing
Build the rhythmic control and listening skills needed to play tasteful basslines and sit comfortably in the pocket.
Take the next step
Once you've mastered this challenge, keep learning with more challenges and guided Learning Pathways.
What you'll learn
Over seven days, Nicole Row will walk you through the core skills that help bassists develop a great pocket. Through focused exercises and jams, you’ll learn how to analyze grooves, control your timing, and shape your basslines with intention.
- Become a more expressive player
- Decode the rhythms of a great groove
- Strengthen the bass-drums connection
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Curriculum
Stay focused with this step-by-step learning program designed by our expert team of music educators.
Day 1. How to lock in with the drums
Sharpen your listening and subdividing skills to create a stronger connection between you and the drums.
To set you up for success in this Challenge, Nicole will help you train your ear to isolate the kick, snare, and hi-hat. You’ll then assign each part a subdivision so you can feel exactly where everything lands. Finally, you'll build a bassline that locks in with the different parts of the drum kit to make the groove tighter.
Day 2. Ghost notes and muting
Make your ghost notes more impactful by focusing on the silence before and after them. You’ll work on plucking-hand muting until it’s second nature.
You’re probably familiar with ghost notes, but Nicole takes this technique a step further by thinking not just about the pluck, but also about the silence that precedes and follows. You’ll work on coordinating your hands to emphasize the percussive side of ghost notes.
Days 3-4. How where you play impacts the groove
In these lessons, we’ll explore how we can shape our feel and tone by changing up where we place our notes around the beat, as well as where we play our basslines on the fretboard. You’ll learn how to create a relaxed groove and build more functional routes around the fretboard.
Day 3. How to lay back in the pocket
Nicole will show you how you can place your notes just behind the beat to create a chill pocket. Using Pino Palladino as our example, we’ll work up to a full bassline that emphasizes the laid-back vibes of neo soul.
Day 4. How note placement impacts the pocket
Just as important as what and how we play is where we play. For example, the same bassline played at the bottom of the neck sounds completely different if you play it up high. Nicole will give us some ideas to consider as we decide where to play our basslines.
Days 5-7. Improve your taste and touch
The final lessons will help you become a more intentional bassist who always serves the song. From leaving tasteful space and adding articulations to knowing how to groove in multiple genres, these lessons will prepare you for whatever your next gig throws at you.
Day 5. Prioritizing space and note length
One of the best ways to sit in the pocket is to be intentional with how short or long our notes are. Learn how by leaving space, we can emphasize the notes we do play, as well as leave room for the other instruments to shine.
Day 6. Same chords, different groove
Each genre and style comes with its own feel and groove. As a bassist, it’s part of your job to know these differences and anticipate what’s expected of you for each. Nicole will show you how to navigate three popular genres that you’ll likely come across on your bass journey: Motown, pop, and rock.
Day 7. How articulation impacts the groove
Your final challenge of the class is to put more intention behind how you’re playing your notes. This is not only a great way to shape your tone. It also impacts the feel and groove of the song you’re playing.
You’ll combine accents, slides, hammer-ons, pull-offs, chromaticism, and ghost notes to shape a performance-ready bassline with taste.
Performances
Now that your pocket is filled to the brim with groove, you’ll apply everything you learned in a musical context. Nicole’s got two performance pieces that’ll help you focus on listening to and locking in with the drums.
Your Instructor
Learn how to hone your rhythm skills and develop a deeper pocket with the touring bassist behind Incubus, Miley Cyrus, and more.
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Frequently asked questions
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