Practice the ii-V-I in all 12 keys with every chord tone spelled out for bass. Pick major or minor, choose 1-3-5-7, thirds and sevenths, or 3-5-7-9, and play along with chords, a bass line and a click on 2 and 4. The key moves on its own, up a 4th each time. There’s no signup and nothing to install.
Every key shows the line on a bass clef staff, the chord tones of the ii, the V and the I, and where the guide tones go next.
Set up the drill
ii-V-I practice, all 12 keys
ii-V-I in C major
Free ii-V-I practice tool: blog.betterbasslessons.com/ii-v-i-all-12-keys/
How to use the practice tool
- Pick major or minor and the key to start in.
- Pick what to play: 1-3-5-7 (the arpeggio), thirds and sevenths (the guide tones, two to a bar), or 3-5-7-9.
- Press Play. You get a count-in, then the ii for a bar, the V for a bar and the I for two. Turn off the bass line when you’re ready to play it yourself.
- Let the key move. Up a 4th takes you around all 12 keys, and Random keeps you honest. Choose how many times through before it changes.
- Print all 12 keys for your music stand.
Start slow. If a key makes you stop, stay there for a few passes, then let it move on.
Where it shows up
Everywhere. From Cole Davis’s jazz improvisation primer: “In C, a ii-V-I is D minor 7 to G7 to C major 7. ‘Autumn Leaves’ is full of them, and the last four bars of a B-flat blues, C minor 7 to F7 to B-flat 7, are one too.”
And on All the Things You Are: “This is a circle of fourths tune, where the chord progression goes in fourths, and it’s pretty much all ii-V-Is.” That’s why the tool moves up a 4th by default.
Thirds and sevenths first
From how to solo on upright bass: “When you’re playing a solo, you think first of thirds and sevenths, because those are the two most important notes that tell you what the chord is.” Watch how little they move. The 7th of the ii falls a half step to the 3rd of the V, every time. “When you swing the thirds and sevenths, you really start to hear the tune.”
Then add the 5th and 9th. From the primer: “Start with 3-5-7-9. On D minor 7 that’s F, A, C and E. On G7 it’s B, D, F and A, or A-flat for the flat 9. On C major 7 it’s E, G, B and D.”
Major and minor in one tune
From the Autumn Leaves walking bass line lesson: “Learn the first eight bars in G minor: C minor 7, F7, B-flat major 7, E-flat major 7, A minor 7 flat 5, D7 and G minor 7.” That’s a major ii-V-I in B-flat and a minor ii-V-i in G minor. The tool writes that V as D7♭9 and puts the flat 9 in the chord, the sound of a minor key.
When the chord tones feel easy in every key, turn them into lines with the free walking bass line builder.
For teachers
The tool is free to use in lessons, and you’re welcome to link to it from your studio or school resources page. Your settings ride along in the link: set the progression, the key, the pattern and the tempo, then copy the address from your browser. Print all 12 keys gives you a one-page chart of every ii-V-I with its chord tones spelled out.
Keep going
Go deeper
Intermediate Jazz Soloing for Upright Bass
For upright bassists who get through the changes but still solo like a fast walking line: thirds and sevenths, the 9, half steps and guide tones.