Pure Harmony Essentials for Bass

$150 | Lifetime access

Pure Harmony Essentials for Bass

Building on what you learned in Seven Worlds for Bass, in this course you will learn to create your own bass riffs and walking lines over changing chords. We will explore the most important chord progressions in popular music and you’ll learn to express these chord progressions in your own original bass lines.

Master improvising over chord progressions!

Building on what you learned in Seven Worlds for Bass, in this course we will explore the art of improvising over songs and chord progressions. You’ll learn to navigate chord changes with ease, creating your own melodic lines and expressive bass lines across the entire fretboard — in a way that truly connects with your musical imagination.

You’ll also develop a deep understanding of harmony from the inside out, so that you can create bass lines that do more than hold down the groove. You’ll be able to improvise bass lines with complete creative freedom, moving through the chord progressions with the confidence of a seasoned player.

Here are some of the skills you will learn:

Create your own bass riffs and walking bass lines. Learn to improvise bass lines that connect the chords together seamlessly.
Learn how to improvise your own bass solos with complete melodic freedom even as the chords are changing around you.
Learn how to hear the chord tones melodically and bring out these sounds in your bass lines and solos.
Learn how to use tension and release to create form and structure in your bass lines.
Master 12 of the most important chord progressions in all popular music.
Method 100% integrated with your ear, with creative exercises for both bass and voice.

Step-by-step video lessons

The course is divided into 12 lessons which are all approximately 14 to 18 minutes in length. Each lesson introduces the next level of the method, including step-by-step demonstrations and playing examples on the bass. The lessons are accompanied by jam tracks that let you practice improvising in a real musical setting.

Learn from a professional musician and experienced teacher

Ben Bourque is a professional guitarist, bassist and trombonist based in New York City. Ben teaches the IFR video lessons for bass with a special focus on applying the IFR harmonic concepts to the unique role of the bass, creating riffs and walking lines in addition to soloing. Ben has a special passion for both music theory and ear training. His video lessons for bass include lots of creative exploration, jamming with backing tracks, and learning to hear and sing the sounds you play.

What students say about this course

“It's amazing—IFR holds the key for me to being more creative and understanding harmony."

Michael FeergradeBass — Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

"IFR has turned my approach right around. It's now improvisation-based. No boring scales or arpeggios—I just put on a jam track and make music while working on technique and ear training. Yay! This is brilliant."

Steve LeeUpright bass — Exeter, UK

"Having the 'instruction,' or more like 'permission,' to go slowly and take your time is so helpful. We learn so much when we slow down and just 'be' in the moment. The learning environment at IFR has really opened the door for me."

Tony FarrellBass and trumpet — Nottingham, UK

What students say about this course

"I searched for a method to be able to express myself freely on the guitar. Then a few months ago I found Improvise for Real. I took Pure Harmony Essentials for Guitar and it was a wonderful experience. I'm on the way now to getting a much deeper understanding of harmony by understanding the fretboard in a totally different way."

Florian RottensteinerGuitar — Graz, Austria

"IFR has enabled me to embark upon a very rewarding ongoing music journey. My discoveries of harmony and melody and their interwoven interplay are enabling me to be much more of a creative, more of a composer, than I ever thought I could be. I cannot express in words how much that truly means to me."

Michael ChapmanGuitar — Pittsburgh, PA, USA

"The IFR guitar courses are the ideal resource for experiencing, feeling, understanding and creating my own music. When I open my IFR space, I finally feel at home in music. There are no levels to validate. The musical landscape is there, fully available without excessive theory, ready to be joyfully discovered."

Annie BeuclerGuitar — Lyon, France

Get this course free with your membership!

When you join, you’ll have complete access to our entire library of video courses, audio courses, jam tracks, and ear training lessons. Everything works together as one unified method to help you master the art of musical improvisation.

Your membership is completely risk-free. Explore everything IFR has to offer, and if you don’t feel it’s the right fit within your first 30 days, just send us an email and we’ll refund your payment in full — no questions asked.