Every "pro" arranger since the '90s has had an optional mode to control the bass line by playing the chord in a specific inversion. Once I understood slash chords and tried this feature for myself, I was amazed by the difference the correct bass note makes. BUT... playing chords in a specific inversion isn't always ergonomic or convenient.

I know that some of you started out on the organ, or learned to "kick bass" years before we had this technology. Good for you! But what I'm asking is... did anyone here BEGIN with a modern arranger, get frustrated with having to play specific inversions, and THEN start using a pedalboard to control the arranger bass? If so, how long did it take you to become proficient? Did you stick with it, or did you go back to playing specific inversions in the chord section?

Now I'm NOT interested in learning to play a boogie-woogie bassline on the pedals. My question is about just using the pedals as a lower manual, to supply the correct bass note for slash chords, or occasionally the root note for difficult progressions, etc. (Note- If the score calls for root bass, I probably wouldn't press a pedal at all, and the arranger would default to its normal Auto Bass Chord.)

I should also mention, I'm strictly a LH chord, RH melody kind of guy. So playing the bass with my left hand and chords in the right isn't an option. Thus considering the pedals as a third manual. Thanks in advance for sharing your experience!

As a side note to Ted's Q....is there a setting that tells the arranger don't do any bass I will do it all myself??

Ted, I come from years of Organ playing....so can't answer your specific question.....I can tell you IMHO learning to play the bass pedals is not all that hard.

I’d say go for Ted! Don’t worry how long it will take, just enjoy the journey!

It isn't that hard if you are just playing roots. Try playing church music,heel and toe,or any classical music. I fyou want to get a little motion,start with 1st and 5th. It is elementary but a start.

On my pa600, I can turn off the bass and play it either left hand or pedals. I have a 17 note studio logic bass pedals midi 'd to the keyboard. I started last week. But I use to play b3 pedals(jazz / Rock) 25 years ago, so I am out of practice. But it works great!

Search wrinkles124 on you tube . I made a video showing the difference in auto bass, left hand bass, pedal bass.

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I appreciate the encouragement (and all the feedback in such a short time!) As I figured, most of you learned when you were young and it was easier to learn something new.

Bernie, a lot of what I play IS church music. Chords (and often the bass too) change on almost every beat! It's evident that some of these songs were written for a two-manual organ with pedals. Thanks to the "easy" chord systems and bass inversion I can usually come up with a passable rendition. But doing so requires a lot of hand movement (and mistakes!) hence my question.

If I just needed to do root and fifth, there are instruments which have a built-in faculty to do this. Lowrey comes immediately to mind. There might also be ways to trick the arranger with footswitches, a MIDI module, and creative style programming. But too often I encounter slash chords where the bass isn't even part of the chord. I can't think of a system to cover all the combinations in a way consistent enough for it to become second nature (i.e.,"muscle memory.") Remember, I'm not looking to play polka or a bass pattern; just to follow the descending bass line as it might be written into the score.

A while ago I bought a 13-note pedalboard thinking that I might be inclined to try. It was quite expensive for something I've never used! Now I'm sorry that I didn't spend even more for the 17- or 20-note pedalboard, because it would be easier to play. For certain it would reduce "jumps" from B to D, etc. I think "real" church organs have pedalboards with two full octaves!

Somewhere deep inside me there's a wannabe church organist trying to get out. Unfortunately I never had access to a good organ, or the requisite training as a young man. So now I have to rely on ingenuity and technology to make up the deficit.


Lee, some arrangers do have a setting for "manual bass" which is I think what you're asking about. If not, it would be easy enough to mute the style bass, and then assign a bass voice to a set of MIDI pedals. Absolute worst case, buy a separate tone module and run the pedal bass through line in.

Teds, I tried learning bass pedals with the organ, and then with a Kn7000 and pedal board, then I sold the pedals. I did not need them for what I was doing. Most churches I have been in have a bass player – are you doing a solo?

If you do decide to use bass pedals, expect to lose some concentration of your right and left hand. Once the pedals become part of you – you play them without thought, you become comfortable again.

My organ teacher told me that the bass pedals guided his left-hand chords. I though it was the other way around.
Learning something new is always a plus.
John C.

PS, years ago, as a guitar player, I had a unit that had bass pedals. Eight pedals. Press one pedal and push the volume pedal to the right, you get a major chord. Press to the left, you get a minor chord. Simple bass lines, drums, and chords. Sold it.

I can understand that this goes well with churchmusic
But these days lots of music has very deined bass loops
That define much of the song..

This makes playing bass pedals quite a challenge..


Personally, if it wasn’t for the bass pedals i would be playing Wersi OAX
And even tough as a child i learned to play home organ
Not using the bass pedals in the last 30 years has erased that part from my experience