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Prelude by Bach, a Bass Transcription by Rhayn Jooste
Prelude by Bach, a Bass Transcription by Rhayn Jooste… The piece for this month is the Prelude from Cello Suite II. This is of course by the master himself J.S. Bach (1685 – 1750). The key is F major; however beginning with D minor (a favorite key of Bach’s to describe tragedy and passion) it also means we are in Aeolian mode. The technique you are aiming for is creating and understanding the interpretation and phrasing of a truly great work from the Baroque era where form and structure were placed at the forefront of art. Your goal is to master the composition and then slowly work up to understanding the melodic elaboration in the chord progression and patterns within patterns that make up the piece. This arrangement follows on from Theory and Technique (One & Two), which outline the basics of patterns and scales and will help with learning this work. This piece will require a 4 string bass guitar.
Main Riff.
The main riff (bars 1 – 3) is an arpeggio followed by a series of linear patterns that make up the principal theme. This repeats through out the piece in various inversions and variations. The chord changes are implied through excellent part writing and solid note choice. This style of writing will aid you if you want to learn how to play walking bass lines. A prelude is described as a flourish and served as an aural and physical warm up of fingers and key before the main movements in a suite.
Written around or after 1720 (there are discrepancies due to no original manuscript being found) this work is based on the technique of implied polyphony and hence is in essence self-accompanied.
Download Bass Transcription, Prelude by Bach
The piece has an A B structure that contains scales, fragments and arpeggios that in some cases are as familiar as a D minor chord in the opening and as unfamiliar as the chord inversions in the ending. What you are aiming for is intelligent interpretation. This means being aware of the construction of lines, how to approach them and ultimately how to phrase them. The use of crescendo, rallantando, dynamics, note attack or small pauses is going to play a large part in clarifying the implied harmony. Passing notes, chromaticism and approach tones half step above or below are employed to move into and out of the changes.
Arpeggios figure heavily and are to be found in not only root but also 1st, 2nd and 3rd versions. Bach was a past master of part writing and here we have the aural illusion of more than one voice being implied through the use of linear scale patterns and intervals greater than a third. The first task to do is sketch out the harmonic progression especially take note of the V’s and i/I ‘s. Next observe the patterns that repeat in successive 3rd ‘s, 4th’s or different keys. A good example of this is bars (44 – 47). This will help allow the music to take shape. Your interpretation should be one, which helps the piece take on life and ideally is based on knowledge of its harmony and figures.
That aside this technique will not sound authentic without the right sound. You are aiming for clear tone with notes that have clean attack. So weight the eq in favor of the treble, warm mids and some low end. Make sure that notes do not ring over one another too much. The chords do not need to be frozen (as they are written) but should be rolled (or arpeggiated). For further listening check out Pablo Casals or Yo Yo Ma’s recordings of these master works.
Prelude from Cello Suite 2 from Rhayn Jooste on Vimeo.
This arrangement utilizes open strings as much (and where appropriate) as possible to facilitate the vast movement on the fretboard. I have included notes so that the comparison can be made as to where changes in octaves have occurred or if you have a 6 string bass the ability to get to a low Eb. Some fingering is supplied as guide lines to achieving what might seem difficult passages or stretches. The aural illusion that Bach (and great jazz bass players) exploit is achieved with linear patterns, intervals and arpeggios. So when working out the melody you will often find the voice leading exact and in key parts the harmony unlike modern progressions. Unfortunately due to the constraints of the 4 string bass this rule has been violated somewhat especially leading up to the last chords. After all that this piece should be a good work out of fingers, mind and music and could be an awesome solo spot on any stage.
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Photo: Self-portrait by Melissa Auf Der Maur
Melissa Auf Der Maur is a Canadian bassist who played with Tinker, Hole, and The Smashing Pumpkins. She released her own work and is a photographer with photos published in Nylon, Bust, and National Geographic. She released her ‘90s Rock Memoir “Even The Good Girls Will Cry” on 17 March 2026.
KB: Did you always want to be a singer-musician growing up?
I’ve played music my whole life. In school, I played trumpet and sang in a children’s choir, so music was always within me. My mother was the first female disc jockey on the Montreal airwaves; her record collection played a huge role in my inspiration and love of music.
KB: When did you start playing bass, and why this instrument?
When I was 19, the early 90s music explosion began to percolate in tiny clubs around the world. I was lucky to be a ticket girl at Montreal’s underground music club. In one year, I saw Hole, Sonic Youth, Smashing Pumpkins, White Zombie, and The Breeders – all had female bass players. That’s when the seed was planted. By the age of 22, I was the bass player of Hole.
KB: Which brands of basses have you used in your career, and which one are you using now?
The first bass that I learned on was a vintage Squier Precision. Hole was sponsored by Fender guitars, so I upgraded to Fender Custom Shop Precisions. That is all I play, but I have a cool vintage 8-string Greco that I use on recordings to thicken up guitar parts.
KB: What equipment do you use or have you used with your basses?
Ampeg SVT amps and cabinets, a couple of Sans-Amp pedals, and that is it.
KB: How did you become a member of Hole, and what is your fondest memory of that time?
Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins was helping scout a replacement for (RIP) Kristen Pfaff, Hole’s bass player. My band, Tinker, opened for them on the Siamese Dream tour, so Billy had seen me play and could vouch for me. Courtney trusted her talented friend, and that was it. I initially said “no thank you” due to my commitment to my photographic studies and the drama and chaos surrounding the band during the “Live Through This” album release. Courtney took it as a good sign that I said no, so convinced me to reconsider, and soon after, I accepted their invitation, in the name of helping put females in the male-dominated landscape of rock music. My fondest memory is every show we played as a mostly female band, symbolizing what a woman could do in a rock band. Every show had a purpose: get more women to play music.
KB: You are a photographer as well. What makes a great picture? Do you shoot in color or b/w?
I started shooting photographs at age 15. Initially only shot black & white and worked in the art school darkroom. In university, I took a color photography course, and shifted mostly and forever to that, because it was easier to process film on the road when I joined a rock band. I experimented with many cameras, point and shoots, manual, polaroids, medium format, and vintage finds. The trick to a good photograph is to shoot many and all the time – the magic is in the edit and selection process.
KB: Are there artists you would love to collaborate with or wish you had?
??I’ve been lucky to collaborate with some of my favorite musicians in my career. I would still love to collaborate with a new generation heavy electronic artist on an analog bass, heavy electronic drums, and synths collaboration project. Take me out of my usual zone, merging the past and future: my love of 80s dark new wave and new artists exploring that genre. It was very futuristic back then, and we are now, after all, living in the future. I am in the mood to play bass to heavy beats I want to dance to.
KB: What are your 7 favorite bass lines in music across all genres? And why these 7?
“Mountain Song” – Jane’s Addiction (love a rambling, rolling bass line – feels like the ocean waves)
“Black Top – Helmet” (was the first bass line I taught myself)
“Gold Dust Woman” – Hole from “The Crow 2” Soundtrack (it was my first bass line contribution to the band)
“Get Ready” – The Temptations (Motown just feels so good, because of the bass)
“Lucretia My Reflection” – Sisters of Mercy (makes me want to hit the dance floor and play bass simultaneously)
“Be My Druidess” – Type O Negative (full chord bass playing at its best by iconic, demonic, Peter Steele, RIP)
“Romantic Rights” – Death from Above (1979 – unique distorted overdriven tone, combined dance rhythm and melodic intelligence, all in one shot – also! Shout out to a bass & drum only band, which is awesome, and we should have more of, but the bass player needs to be a killer to fill that role.
KB: What are you currently up to?
Releasing my ‘90s Rock Memoir “EVEN THE GOOD GIRLS WILL CRY”. Visceral healing process, it was to get it out of me and write it, but I suspect the real magic will begin by putting it into the world and reflecting with others on what the magic of the ‘90s was all about. Powerful music decade that carried us into what is now a brave new world of digital corporate weirdness – may the past shed a light on our future. That’s my hope for this book release and tour.
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