couple questions

[mx Bass player]

if i was to write a song in the key of a would the first note played need to be a or does it not matter....also wat does the double flat sign mean like for the g flat chord...i found on the net it says g flat b flat flat d flat

[gaslight]

The first note can be anything you want.

A double flat sign means to lower a note two semi-tones.

Gb, Bbb and Db together like that produce a Gb minor triad. I'm guessing the reason they've used a double flat is because they're in the key of Gb natural minor, which is kind of a rare one to encounter. In most cases you'd see that chord written as F#, A, C#, which is an F# minor triad. It sounds exactly the same because the notes are enharmonic (different name for the same notes), it would just be easier to write out and read that way.

If you're wondering why in the key of Gb natural minor it is a Bbb instead of an A or something, it's because a minor triad is composed of a root note, a minor third and a perfect fifth. They have to call it a Bbb because if they called it an A it would be an augmented second. Just annoying theory stuff really.

If you're wondering why someone would choose to write something out as Gb minor rather than F# minor, I don't think I'll ever know :lol:.

[mx Bass player]

cool thanks man

[MetalPhreak]

man im tryin to write sum songs too but my bass broke

[lais817]

man im tryin to write sum songs too but my bass broke
I feel for you, truly I do.

just clarifying what gaslight said, the first note can be anything you want, but it'd probably sound better if it is contained in the Amaj/min scale, whichever you're using. ie:

Amaj= ABC#DE#F#G#A

Amin= ABCDEFGA

yeah, it doesn't have to be in key each and every time, but it generally sounds better if it is. Hope I've added something, gaslight's covered all you need to know :thumb:

[mx Bass player]

few more questions........they might sound bit stupid so sorry but anyway......just wondering about time sigs.....can they change in the middle of a song or are they the same throughout it....sorry it might sound dumb.....and also im asking if a guitarist plays a c chord does that mean the bassist should play notes from that chord or can he do whateva? Thanks

[gaslight]

Time signatures can change at any time during a song, but the majority of pop songs will stay in whatever one they start in.

If a guitarist plays a C chord the bassist's first choice is to play a C as well, to add extra notes you then look at the notes in the chord they are playing, and beyond that, in the scale the chord is derived from.

Generally speaking, if you're only going to play one note under a chord, make it the root note.

If you want to add extra notes, chord tones will be safe (so for a Cmaj7 chord you can make use of C,E,G,B) and beyond that you can use the notes from the C major scale, though you would tend to avoid the 4th (F) because in a major scale the 4th is an avoid note (it doesn't tend to sound very good against the maj7 chord built off the 1).

If you were playing over a Cmin7 chord the chord tones are C,Eb,G,Bb and the chord is derived from a C natural minor scale, and so on.

There are lots of options over every kind of chord but that doesn't mean you have to use them all the time.