Talk:Walking bass

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"Jazz walking bass has been likened to an improvisation restricted to quarter notes."

Jazz Walking Bass

What is referred to most often, however, when the term "walking bass" is used, is the jazz bass style. This style is made up almost entirely of quarter notes which outline the chord changes of the song. In a very classic or "in" jazz setting, this usually consist of the arpeggiated scale. In a more modern or "out" context, the chosen notes may include more 4ths, flat 5ths, flat 9ths, etc. Within the chord changes, the bass player has freedom to choose notes which fit the mood/style of the song, notes that will "lead" to listener to the next chord, and notes that compliment or contrast the soloist's musical statement.

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As

1. I doubt that "walking bass" specifically means jazz, and
2. the description appears to refer to Boogie-woogie (music)

Hyacinth 12:22, 11 December 2005 (UTC)

I guess I found this especially annoying as I had taken great pains to not limit the definition/description to what I knew. It does appear that most boogie-woogie basslines are walking bass. Hyacinth 12:35, 11 December 2005 (UTC)

No it is not necessarily only jazz! I have a good non-jazz example: A Taste Of Honey by Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass. A classic walking bass!! -andy 85.181.180.15 (talk) 14:12, 12 July 2008 (UTC)

Definition

• "A walking bass line is the most common approach to jazz bass playing. The term 'walking' is used to describe the moving feeling that quarter notes create in the bass part. Just like walking with your feet, the walking bass line is one step after the other that takes you somewhere. This is an important concept to remember, the walking bass line is movement." (p.4)
  • Friedland, Ed (1995). Building Walking Bass Lines. ISBN 0793542049.

Hyacinth 13:11, 3 March 2006 (UTC)

Question about MIDI example

The first notated example (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Typical_boogie_woogie_bass.png) shows "unsyncopated notes of equal value" as described in the first paragraph, but the associated MIDI example (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/da/Twelve_bar_boogie-woogie_blues_in_C.mid) seems to be played with a swing so that the notes are not of equal value. Is this just a stylistic choice, or is the MIDI example incorrect? 68.237.13.119 (talk) 05:52, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

It wouldn't be boogie-woogie without swing. Hyacinth (talk) 08:55, 8 August 2008 (UTC)

True! But isn't swing a kind of syncopation, or am I confused (which is quite possible!) If swing is a kind of syncopation, then that's what I'm getting at: the definition ("unsyncopated notes of equal value") is at odds with the examples. And the example midi is perhaps at odds with the graphic, which doesn't notate the swing. 68.237.13.119 (talk) 05:09, 10 August 2008 (UTC)

Two things are quickly apparent, you are currently unfamiliar with any of these terms and concepts and that this article does not currently provide adequate context for such readers (Wikipedia:Make technical articles accessible). Hyacinth (talk) 20:00, 10 August 2008 (UTC)

Agreed! 68.237.13.119 (talk) 20:54, 10 August 2008 (UTC)

Isn't the whole issue solved by the use of "generally" in the first sentence of the article? Hyacinth (talk) 21:26, 10 August 2008 (UTC)