Looking to improve your intonation?
Check out Our Top Free Lessons on Playing in Tune.
Playing with great intonation is an essential skill that can really set you apart from your peers. However, as all double bassists know, it’s not easy, and it’s something we have to work on each and every time we pick up our instrument. With that in mind, our tutors are here to help with this collection of lessons and interviews on the topic of intonation and tuning.
Whether you’re a beginner or have been playing for years, a jazz bassist, a classical bassist, or somewhere in between, there is a lesson in here for you.
1. Jason HeatH’s Top tips
In this interview, classical expert Jason Heath shares his best tips on how to play in tune, including using sympathetic vibrations to check that you’re REALLY in tune. It’s a short video, but there’s some great advice that’s not often addressed.
2. Simple scale exercise for intonation
This scale exercise is one of my favourites and is a great way to approach learning the fingerboard. Many bassists suffer from spending most of their time in half and 1st position, with a bit of playing up and down the G string to get the top notes. This simple exercise can help you avoid that trap, whilst playing with great intonation.
3. top tips for accurate shifting
If you can’t shift consistently and accurately, you will never be able to play in tune on the double bass. Despite this, shifting is often overlooked by students, so I strongly encourage you to add some exercises to your practice routine. In this video, classical bass expert Phoebe Russell shares some excellent tips for accurate shifts every time.
4. sing what you play with Katie Thiroux
In this exclusive preview from her first course, Katie demonstrates how singing what you play can have a huge impact on your ear training skills and intonation. This video is only available from this article, so don’t miss it. You can also check out the transcription below and learn some of KT’s awesome bass lines.
5. The phantom hand method
This has to be one of our weirdest lesson titles, but it’s actually an incredible exercise that helps you build an internal map of the fingerboard to improve your intonation - so nothing too spooky! 👻
Presented by L.A. Philharmonic bassist David Allen Moore, it’s well worth learning, no matter what style of music you play.
6. "The Glide” – Geoff’s Finger replacement exercise
The double bass can be particularly challenging to play in tune, and this exercise will help you master two crucial aspects: your hand shape and shifting. These are both essential if you want to play with accurate intonation (and who doesn’t!), so take a couple of minutes to add this to your practice routine.
Playing with great intonation is something we all need to work on and improve; as no matter how experienced we are, there’s always a new piece to learn that can trip you up. Playing out of tune can be a painful experience, so I hope that we’ve helped you make progress with these videos!
Thanks for watching and best of luck for all your (in tune!) bass playing.
Geoff Chalmers – DDB Founder
READY to learn more?
Check out our some of our full legnth courses with great lessons on intonation
Listen Up! by John Goldsby
Ear training and intonation for jazz bassists.
Technique Transformer
A revolution in double bass technique
BANDSTAND AND BEYOND by Katie Thiroux
Jazz double bass lessons for intermediate and advancing bassists.