Level 2 · The Stradella bass — bass note and chord

the left-hand bass rows, the bass-then-chord (oom-pah) pattern, coordinating both hands

The Stradella bass turns the left hand into a whole rhythm section; reading it by feel (the dimpled buttons) frees the eyes for the treble keyboard.

What you learn

• The Stradella layout: the two inner rows are fundamental basses (with the C and E counterbass dimples to orient your fingers by feel), the outer rows are ready-made major, minor, 7th and diminished chords.
• Find the C fundamental by its dimple, then the F (one row ‘in’) and G (one row ‘out’) — the I, IV and V basses of C major.
• The bass–chord ‘oom-pah’: fundamental bass on the strong beat, major chord button on the weak beat.
• Play a I–IV–V–I bass-and-chord pattern in C while the bellows stay even.
• Add the right-hand melody over the left-hand oom-pah — the first time both hands and the bellows work together.

Grounded in: the standard Stradella (fixed-bass) and free-bass left-hand systems — for left-hand layout, bass-and-chord patterns, and free-bass polyphony.

Note: a method-grounded technique curriculum (no score corpus for this instrument); levels are graded skills, not pieces.