Free Worship Bass Instrumental

By Bass Levite

Sometimes during worship, the atmosphere might build up and the badn can start doing "free worship". This is basically where the band plays a series of chords over and over again in an instrumental session, and the people worship "freely". Hillsong does this a lot.

The following is based on the common chord progression G - D - Em - C.
[Kenny: it sounds quite abit like Let Us Adore, you might want to practice this lesson with the song.]



[Kenny: I didn't put a title and ending picture to the video as somehow windows movie maker distorts the sound for Bass Levite's videos]

I was just improvising some stuff, and came up with this. The timing is off at a few places, but I hope you get the picture. To be able to do these, you need to know the fretboard very well; scales and arpeggios. The key bit is that after "running around the fretboard" between chords, you must hit the next chord in time and it will sound okay. The (*) bits indicate where I have occasionally deviated away from this rule intentionally to funk it up.


First round, just G - D - Em - C, then as it builds up...
----------------------------------------------
----------------------------12-12-12-12-12-12-
-10-10-10-10-10-10-10s12h14-------------------
----------------------------------------------

----------------------------------
-12----12h14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-
----12----------------------------
----------------------------------

------------------------------
12-10-10-10-12-10----10-12----
------------------12-------12-
------------------------------

----------------------------------------------
----------------------------12-12-12-12-12-12-
-10-10-10-10-10-10-10s12h14-------------------
----------------------------------------------

----------------------------12h14-12----------
-12----12h14-14-14-14-14-14----------14-12s10-
----12----------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------

-------------9-9-12-12-------
-10-10-10-10-----------12-12-
-----------------------------
-----------------------------

-----------------------------
----------9----9h10s12-12-12-
-10-10-10---10---------------
-----------------------------

-11----11-12-14-12-11----
----12----------------14-
-------------------------
-------------------------

----------12h14-12----------------9-9---------
-14-14-14----------14-12-10-10-10-----10-10-9-
----------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------12-12-12-12-12-12-
-10-10-10-10-10-9h10-9h10-12-14-------------------
--------------------------------------------------

------------------------------
-12----12h14-14-14-14-14-14-14
----12------------------------
------------------------------

----------------------------
----12-14-12-10-10-10-10-10-
-12-------------------------
----------------------------

----------------------------
-12-12-12-14-12-14-12------- *
----------------------14s10-
----------------------------

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------12-12-12-12-12-12-
-10-10-10-10-10-9h10-9h10-12-14-------------------
--------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------
-12----12h14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-12-
----12-------------------------------
-------------------------------------

------------12-12h14-12----------
10s12-12h14-------------14-12---- *
------------------------------12-
---------------------------------

---------------------------------
----------------9----9----9s12-12
-10-10-10-10-10---10---10--------
---------------------------------

-11----11-12-14-12-11----------
----12----------------14-12----
----------------------------12-
-------------------------------

----------------14-14h16-16-14-
-14-14-14-14-14----------------
-------------------------------
-------------------------------

------------------------12-------
16-14s10-10-10-12-12h14----12----
------------------------------10-
---------------------------------

Every bassist have their own "style". I do a lot of hammer-ons and slides-ins. Develop your own "groove" and style instead of just copying other musicians. Have fun free worshipping!