Canon pianoTHE MUSICARTA CANON PROJECTMODULE THREE – ADDING THE BASS LINEThe Canon piano solo is the perfect starting point for learning to play along with a chord sequence. The popular, well-known chords repeat predictably while melodic figures in the treble provide ideal material for learning about harmony, composition and improvisation. This is Module Three of the Musicarta Canon Project, a series of free online piano lessons which shows you how to play a chord sequence freely and put together your own unique Canon performance from easily-mastered musical components.
If you want to get the most out of this module, do the following four things first: |
CANON PROJECT The D major scale Canon Project 2 Thirds in the treble Canon Project 3 Bass line + RH thirds Canon Project 4 Triads in the treble |
CANON : ADDING THE BASS LINE
Whenever you listen to a recording of the Pachelbel Canon, the first thing you hear is a string of eight low notes:
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This is the ‘bass line’. It uses these six D major scale tones:
Further on in this module, you are going to play the bass line in the left hand and the thirds from Module Two in the right hand. To do this, it is essential that you know the bass line by heart, even if you still use written music as a reminder.
Two things will help you memorise the bass line:
- the shape, and
- the fingering.
The shape of the bass line
It’s helpful to see the bass line as four pairs of notes. In music, pairs of notes are called ‘intervals’. An interval is a musical measure of distance. Remember that we count all the note names in intervals.
If we squash and pull the diagram, the shape is more obvious. As one zig-zag line, the bass line looks like this:
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Practice picking out the bass line from the line diagram alone. The notes are shown down the left hand side.
Fingering the bass line
You will find it easier to remember the bass line if you always use the same fingering to play it. Here is one recommended fingering:
Learning the fingering on the line diagram will help you memorise the bass line. Here’s another possibility:
Revise the thirds
Revise the thirds from Module Two, using two hands..
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In order to play hands together, you have to be able to play the Module Two string of thirds with the right hand alone. First, play all the thirds with right hand fingers 4 and 2 (RH4 and RH2). The left hand does nothing.
To play the thirds more ‘joined up’ (legato), we have to think about the fingering. The easiest thing is to fingers the thirds in pairs – 4-2 then 3-1:
Put the hands together
Now to put the hands together. Here is the music for the simplest possible version – whole notes in both hands.
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Play this to your ‘backing track’ recording.
If you find this too difficult, it may be because you’re new to playing with the hands so far apart (which is considered quite advanced). Try sitting further back, away from the keyboard, until you can see both hands comfortably. Or else, play the right hand an octave lower than written.
Thirds variations in the right hand
The easiest way to develop this performance is to double the number of left hand notes (making them half-notes) and ‘waggle’ the right hand thirds. Notice how the right hand fingering helps you not to run out of fingers.
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Next, add the ‘next-door-note’ feature to the right hand. The right hand fingering again follows a predictable pattern, helping to keep fingers available for the up-coming notes.
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The bass line is shown as simple whole notes, but you can play two half-note bass notes per bar if you wish. Also, the fingering for the left hand is not given. Make sure you finger it sensibly yourself, without the reminder.
Finally, put the ‘waggled’ third back together on the first beat.
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Practice the right hand on its own first. Notice the ‘tweak’ in bar 8 – thirds climbing back up to the starting position.
Here are some more Module Two-type patterns written out for the right hand solo:
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The right hand thumb (RH1) note is shown stems-down. If you like, you can try to make it ‘sticky’, and keep it down while the upper notes change in the second half of the bar. The audio and MIDI performance files have a chord accompaniment; you will play just the roots. Try to play along – you can slow down the performance in MidiPiano.
The next pattern uses exactly the same notes, but changes the rhythm:
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Only the right hand is given. Supply a left hand.
The right hand fingering – swapping from RH3 to RH2 – again keeps producing more fingers for the sideways movement of the hand. Notice the indication ‘sim.’ in bar four. ‘Sim.’ is short for simile, which is Italian for ‘the same’. It means, carry on fingering the bars in the same way. (You are supposed to have spotted the pattern by now.)
After bar six, the fingering reverses, to ‘creep’ the hand the other way.
Experiment with combining elements of the patterns you have so far:
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Your Module Audio Challenge
Here is an audio-only example for you to copy:(Canon65)
The second audio-only example changes the rhythm of the bass notes:
