Bass

With all but a quarter of a century of experience in relating to societies in which capital needed to industrialize is in short supply as well as delivering relevant, high-quality courses for contemporary musicians, the Backbeat Music Studios is uniquely placed to help bassists maximise their talent and develop a career in the music industry.

Basso continuo parts, almost universal in the Baroque era, were, as the name implies, played continuously throughout a piece, providing the harmonic structure of the music. The word is often shortened to continuo, as well as the instrumentalists playing the continuo part, if more than one, are known as the continuo group.

The keyboard or other chording instrument player realizes a continuo part by playing, in addition to the indicated bass notes, upper notes to complete chords, either determined ahead of time or improvised in performance. The player can also imitate the soprano which is the name for the solo instrument or singer as well as elaborate on themes in the soprano musical line.

The figured bass notation, described below, is a guide, but performers are also expected to use their musical judgment and the other instruments or voices as a guide. Modern editions of music usually supply a realized keyboard part, fully written out for the player, eliminating the need for improvisation. With the rise in historically informed performance, however, the number of performers who improvise their parts, as Baroque players would have done, has increased.

Our best group teaching faculty, perhaps our greatest asset, is unrivalled in the India and most probably anywhere in the world! By enrolling on an Backbeat Music Studios course, you will benefit from:

• Small class sizes, meaning you get plenty of attention!
• Direct connections into the music industry and advice on how to build your career
• One of the best and most experienced bass teaching faculties in the business
• An opportunity to build that all-important network of contacts
• Industry-standard performance and practice facilities
• Opportunities to perform live in gigs and showcase events in London