Rhythm is the life force of bass playing. If you play with good feel and solid timing, everyone in the band and audience will love your playing.
Us bass players are mostly concerned with using simple basic rhythms.
However, occasionally, you might want to whip out the big guns and that's where 1/16th note triplets come in.
They look and sound scary but I'll break it down slowly for you in the video lesson below.
In the bass tutorial, I'll show you how to play them using:
- Slap
- Chordal fingerstyle
- Tapping
- Fingerstyle (the 'normal' version!)
- Legato - the use of hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides
Here's how they relate to the good old quarter note (which is worth one beat).
1/16th Note Triplet Bass Guitar Lesson
In terms of application, it's probably best to use this rhythm sparingly. You will hear players like Victor Wooten, Billy Sheehan, and Flea use them from time to time though.
They sound very effective in solos and when you want to add some flair in.
Here's Flea in action using some 1/16th note triplets!
