Slap Bass Basics
T under a note means slap with the side of the thumb, P means pop the string with the index or middle finger. An x is a ghost note: mute the string with the fretting hand and slap it for a percussive click. Learn the patterns in order, slowly, and repeat each one until the volume of thumb and pop is even.
Thumb (T) on the E and A strings
Octaves: thumb (T) and pop (P)
Thumb, ghost note, pop and hammer-on (h)
T = slap with the side of the thumb, P = pop the string with the index or middle finger, × = muted ghost note, h = hammer-on. Start slowly: the sound must be clean, not loud.
Goal
Learn the basic slap motions: the thumb hitting the string against the last frets, the pop pulling a higher string so it snaps back, ghost notes for rhythm and hammer-ons for extra notes without an extra stroke.
How to practise
- Thumb: keep the thumb roughly parallel to the strings and bounce off the string; the motion comes from the wrist turning, not from the arm.
- Pop: hook the finger slightly under the string and pull it up a little. Too much pull makes the note sharp and loud.
- Muting: the fretting hand mutes all strings that should not ring; the thumb rests on the lower string after a pop.
- Metronome at 60 BPM in eighth notes. Raise it only when every pattern sounds even.
Self-check
Are the thumb notes and the pops equally loud? Are there unwanted open strings ringing? Ghost notes should click, not sing.
Next steps
Read the slap bass lesson and practise the left-hand side with bass octaves. For the funk feel without slap, play sixteenth-note grooves, always with the metronome.