This bass lesson covers slash chords and inversions. These are important chords for bass players to recognise and understand since they are a direct influence on the bassline.
Slash Chords And Inversions
The slash chord is often associated with inversions and is represented by two notes separated with a slash. The notes are either side by side or on top of each other. The note at the top or to the left is the chord being used and the note to the bottom or to the right is the bass note to be played underneath it. In a band situation the bass would play the bottom note, G, while the guitar or keys play the rest of the chord. On a single instrument such as a guitar, the whole chord would be played with the G as the lowest note.
What Is An Inversion?
Let’s take a C major triad:
C E G
1 3 5
This is known as a root position triad, but if we move the root up an octave then we get the first inversion of C major.
E G C
3 5 1
If we do this again and take the 3rd, (E), up an octave then we get the second inversion of C major.
G C E
5 1 3
This principle can be applied on a broader scale across multiple instruments. As long as the bass note is the 3rd or 5th then we have an inversion – it doesn’t matter about the order of the notes above this.
Don’t worry about the rules of traditional baroque and classical writing such as avoiding certain intervals or not doubling the 3rd as this isn’t important in modern western music. Just think of slash chords as certain chords being played over a certain bass line.
Slash chords are particularly important to us as bass players as they give us a certain amount of power in the band. If the chord being played is a C major and we play the 3rd (E) or the 5th (G), then we are inverting the chord to create a unique sound.
Try playing each inversion of C major one after the other to compare the sound of each one.
Root position – C E G – C Major
First inversion – E G C – C/E
Second inversion – G C E – C/G
Inversions are usually used to create a more interesting root movement. Let’s take the following chord sequence for example:
C | C | F | G
We can make this progression more interesting by using the first inversion of C major in the second bar.
C | C/E | F | G
This gives the bass line a smoother transition from the C to the F and breaks the two bars of C major up a bit.
Let’s take a slightly more complex chord sequence and use inversions to spice up the bass line.
Cmaj7 | Em7 Am7 | Dm7 | G7
Firstly, we can invert the Dm7 so we have a 3rd in the bass. This gives us Dm7/F. We can then use the second inversion of Am7 to give us Am7/E. This allows us to stay on E for two chords and thus make the transition smoother. For the last chord, we can also use the 2nd inversion to let us stay on D for two chords. So the new sequence should look like this:
Cmaj7 | Em7 Am7/E | Dm7/F | G7/D
Try not to overuse inversions as they can throw other musicians off if you do them without warning. Changing the root notes can enhance a song but overuse can kill it.
Chord progressions often use quite jagged root movement as the chords are not always close together. The bass can sometimes fix this by moving the roots around to create a smooth line linking the chords together. A good example is Procol Harlem’s ‘A Whiter Shade of Pale’ (which is pretty similar to Bach’s ‘Air On A G String’). In C, the progression is:
C C/B | Am C/G | F F/E | Dm F/C
G G7/F | Em Dm7 G | C F | G F/A G/B
This sequence would sound very choppy played as basic triads, but changing the bass notes around creates a linear line that flows more smoothly.
We don’t have to limit ourselves to inversions as pretty much any note can be placed under a chord and indicated using a slash chord. You can have 6ths and 4ths in the bass when they work to weave a smooth line through the chords.
Pedal Notes
When we hold a bass note through several chord changes, it is called a pedal note (sometimes pedal tone). Doing this creates a variety of unusual sounds caused by the chords moving and creating tension and release on top of the static bass line. An example of this is the end of ‘Evergreen’ by Barbra Streisand:
A | Bb/A | B/A | C/A | B/A | A
Notice how not all of the chords naturally contain an A, but changing the chords around this pedal note creates some interesting tones.
Using Slashes To Simplify Chords
Another use for slash chords is to simplify certain chord symbols. This can be a little bit misleading but it can be a good way of describing a chord to someone who might not have it under their fingers. For example, a Cm7b5 can also be written as Ebm/C. This simply gives guitarists an alternative name for the chord so they can find it quicker.
Hi Mark,
Can you elaborate when you say “chord progressions having a jagged root movement due to the Circle of 4ths”. I’ve recently learned the Circle of 5ths, and I’m digesting how the 4ths are related, but I’m not clear on the connection to the progression. Thanks!
Hi Steve. If you follow my intervals lessons I cover (in part 3 I think) interval inversion. This is where the top note of an interval is dropped an octave and so is ‘inverted’. Perfect 5ths and 4ths are related by this inversion. If you take C to G you have a perfect 5th. Drop the G an octave and you have a G to C which is a perfect 4th. Another, more relevant way of looking at this is that a G is a perfect 5th above C but is also a perfect 4th below C.
Take C to B as another example, C up to the B is major 7th . If we go down to a B from C we only have to move semitone or major 2nd. So a Major 7th is a major 2nd when inverted and vice versa. Phew. Now I can move onto the Cycle of 4ths.
The cycle of 5ths moves up in perfect 5th intervals as you already know: C,G,D,A,E,B,F#/Gb,Db,Ab,Eb,Bb,F,C etc.
The cycle of 5ths is useful when it comes to looking at key signatures and other 5th based things but chord movement is often dominated by the dominant-tonic resolution which is a movement by fourth. In the key of C you can hear this by hearing a chord progression end in G major to C major. That is chord 5 to chord 1. It’s even stronger when we us G7 to Cmajor. Because of this strong pull from the dominant chord (5) to the tonic chord (1) it provides a basis for chord progressions. So in the key of C major, if we create a progression expanding on this G7 to C we could use the chord a perfect 5th from G which is D. This chord is chord 2 in C major and so is a Dminor (See my chords in a major key lesson). Then we do the same thing from D and we get A. This is chord 6 in C major so we use an Aminor. So now we have a chord progression of Aminor – Dminor- G7 – C major. Each chord has moved a perfect 4th but within the key of C major. I’ll cover all this stuff in an upcoming lesson on chord progressions but for now just remember that chord progressions often move by perfect fourth intervals. It provides a sense of movement and ‘progression’.
This leads me back to the cycle of 4ths. This cycle can be memorised and practiced by simply reversing the cycle of 5ths. So we have C-F-Bb-Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-B-E-A-D-G-C etc. This sequence of notes is useful in learning the order of Flat keys. C = no flats, F = 1 flat, Bb = 2 flats etc.
Because fourths are so common in progressions, we often use the cycle of 4ths as a basis for practicing when learning stuff. It helps internalise the note order so you can spot it more easily and become accustomed to the movement. I also helps with allowing us to cover every key without getting too familiar with one like C major. So you might practice a major scale through the cycle of 4ths: C major, F major, Bb major, Eb major etc.
One easy way for you to visualise the cycle of 4ths is to take one of the circle diagrams I show on the video lesson (just do a google search for cycle of 5ths and you’ll see hundreds of them) and work counter-clockwise around the circle. The cycle of 5ths is clockwise.
Sorry to be so in depth. Just let me know if you need any more info.
Mark
Wow, thank you for such detailed clarification, it was definitely helpful. I look forward to your future chord progressions lesson.
Best,
Steve
You should get a medal for this, Mark! What an amazing job you have done, putting this site and all the material together – and for FREE! This must be the best music theory course on earth – on ANY medium, including face-to-face!
Thanks a lot. I might be turning the music theory series into a book and possibly an app in the near future.
Definitely the best series of online bass lessons I’ve come across. Highly recommended.
The material is so interesting,please how can i get hard copy for learng to play bass guitor
Mark,
I have to be honest…I am lost with slash cords. Just not getting it. I am okay with everything on your Bassic fundamentals course and most of these videos but when it comes to this slash chords the instructions are as clear as mud. The videos just go by a little too fast for my skill level and the language get me confused. When you say for, example, that as base players when we see a Gm/B chord we need to play the B well, I do that and it sounds awful and not at all what your track sounds like. BTW, I am sure that many, if not most folks get the instructions above. I, on the other hand got a head ache trying to understand it.
Thanks for the excellent work you do, you motivated me to want to learn bass guitar @ almost 60. I am sure the light will go on at some point, just frustrated right now. If there is a S L O W E R video on topic that you put out, let me know.
Gm/B would sound awful because B is not in the chord. That would have to be a Bb.
Inversions sound different to normal root position chords. Don’t necessarily expect a familiar sound. They can sound odd while they last and then make more sense as they resolve on the next chord. Try playing the note in a higher register. For example, if the chord is a C/E. Play the E at the 2nd fret of the D string instead of the open E string. I find it can sometimes give a little less mud to proceedings and can help in getting used to the inversion sound.
Hi Mark,i recently started playing the bass and ive been following your lessons and i love them!!
Do you have any pdf document for this lesson?
Thanks and keep up the amazing work
no pdf’s for this lesson, it could help to understand.
Hi Mark, please can we have a PDF for this lesson?
where is the pdf for this lesson
Wonderful Staff
Today i have fully understood what slash chords are in relation to reading bassline
Hi Mark,
I have been following your lessons but I got lost at the part when you started playing Cmaj7 – Em7 Am7 – Dm7 – G7. I had learnt how to play those chords out in arpeggio from your previous videos, but how had you played them out harmonically here?
Thank you!
I believe.a B to a C is a minor 2nd not major 2nd ?
Yup.
Yup.