Role of the electric bass in music
SUMMARY DIAGRAM
MAIN FUNCTION OF THE ELECTRIC BASS: PROVIDE THE RHYTHMIC-HARMONIC FOUNDATION.
STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS OF MUSIC: RHYTHM, MELODY, HARMONY.
RHYTHM: ORDER OF THE MOVEMENT OF SOUNDS ORGANIZED OVER TIME AND BASED ON AN ISOCHRONOUS PULSATION.
MELODY: SUCCESSION OF SINGLE SOUNDS AT A GIVEN PITCH ORDERED RHYTHMICALLY OVER TIME.
HARMONY: THE SET OF RULES RELATING TO THE CHORDS AND THEIR MOVEMENT. PERFORMING A CHORD MEANS TO PLAY 3 OR MORE SOUNDS AT THE SAME TIME OR IN ARPEGGIO STYLE.
CHORD PROGRESSIONS: SUCCESSION OF 2 OR MORE CHORDS WHICH REPEAT CYCLICALLY.
THE BASS PLAYS THE CHORDS (OR PARTS OF THEM) IN THE CHORD PROGRESSIONS IN MELODIC FORM (THEREFORE PERFORMS A LOW MELODY), PROVIDING WITH THE STRENGTH OF ITS LOW REGISTER THE HARMONIC FOUNDATION AND THE RHYTHMIC BASEMENT.
ARPEGGIO: METHOD OF EXECUTION OF A CHORD IN WHICH THE NOTES ARE PLAYED ONE AFTER THE OTHER AND MADE RESONATE TOGETHER.
THE HARMONIC FOUNDATION FUNCTION CAN BE CARRIED OUT ALSO BY OTHER LOW REGISTER INSTRUMENTS SUCH AS THE LEFT PART OF THE KEYBOARDS, DOUBLE BASS, CELLO, LOW TUBE, LOW SAX, BASSOON, BASSOON, VOICE, ETC.
IN ADDITION TO THE BASIC FUNCTION OF EXPRESSING THE MOVEMENT OF THE CHORDS, THE ELECTRIC BASS, VERSATILE INSTRUMENT, IS ABLE TO PERFORM MELODIES, IMPROVISATIONS, OBBLIGATOS, HARMONICS, CHORDS PLAYED IN THE GUITAR-STYLE, CONTEMPORARY EXECUTION OF BASS AND MELODY (TAPPING), PERCUSSIVE MUSIC (SLAP).
THE ELECTRIC BASS IS THE PROTAGONIST IN MODERN GENRES (SINCE THE END OF THE FIFTY YEARS): ROCK, SOUL, FUNK, DISCO, FUSION, REGGAE, ETC.
IN SOME GENRES THE ELECTRIC BASS PLAYS A MINOR ROLE OR IS TOTALLY ABSENT: CLASSIC, JAZZ OF THE ORIGINS AND CLASSIC JAZZ, ETHNIC MUSIC.