Here we are at the first free lesson in collaboration with chitarrafacile.com.
In these lessons I will cover various topics dedicated to acoustic guitar and fingerstyle techniques.
Let’s start with the Blues: a simple and interesting way to apply some basic concepts of polyphonic execution.
The technique we are examining today is the OSTINATO BASS.
When we talk about “Ostinato Bass” we usually mean a comping technique performed with the thumb of the right hand, which marks the pulsation of the song, usually in quarter notes, on the tonic of the chord.

In other words, while the melody moves freely on the high strings, the bass (like the pianist’s left hand), performs this constant background to give the song the reference to harmony and at the same time a very interesting rhythmic support.
The main difficulties at the beginning consist in being able to keep this element constant with the variation of the phrasing on the high strings.

Mastering this technique will help you gain an independence between the thumb of the right hand and the other fingers (index, middle, ring finger), which is one of the main and most important features of polyphonic execution, typical of fingerstyle technique.
In this study we see a simple Blues, in the key of E, over a twelve-bar structure, repeated twice, for a total of twenty-four bars.
Try practicing initially only on the bass line, perhaps with the use of the metronome to train the regularity of the pulsation and then to perform it freely, particularly emphasizing the second and fourth beat.
In the upcoming events we will study this technique in the world of Blues music and also in many other contexts to discover the different potentials.
See you next lesson and have a good Music time!