Update

Updated diagrams

Origin

Many bass players seem to focus on “Major scale in 2 octaves” and then as they deal with figuring this out from various starting points develop a foundation of scale patterns across the neck.

I was taught these patterns by a GIT educated guitarist, although I see the same in Jaco Pastorius’s “Modern Electric Bass”. Specifically Pattern 5 as “Exercise 2” and he plays Pattern 4 for demonstrating diatonic 6ths in “Exercise 7”.

I skip seeing Pattern 1 and Pattern 2 as separate and instead construct them on-the-fly from pieces of the others. They hold more meaning for guitarists who have to deal with the 1 fret displacement of a high B string. It’s possible to connect Pattern 5 to 3 and 4 both horizontally and vertically. Practically imaging them as running across more strings then are on the bass.

Exercises

  • Play everything ascending and descending.
  • Play up one pattern and down the next.
  • Play in diatonic 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, and 6ths.
  • Also 7ths and 9ths though this may require combining patterns.

Sequence

TTSTTTS

Pattern 1

Pattern 2

Pattern 3

Pattern 4

Pattern 5

Sliding pattern (Chuck Sher)

Remember, slide up with first finger and down with pinkie.