There’s a comfort in landing on the tonic the same way every time.
It’s reliable. It’s safe. It works.
For me, that default resolution shows up most when the chord changes are flying by and I don’t have much time to think. My hands almost instinctively go to a Mixolydian scale derived from the V chord — for example, if the tune is heading to an F major tonic, I’ll reach for C Mixolydian.
This is an easy choice, because C Mixolydian literally has the same notes as an F major scale.
And honestly? There’s nothing wrong with that.
The 3rd of C (E) resolves beautifully to the F (root of the tonic), and the 7th (B♭) has that strong voice-leading pull to the A — the 3rd of F major. Add a little chromaticism and it’s clean, inside, and perfectly functional.
But that approach rarely leads to a darker modal color or unexpected melodic contour.
And these days, that’s exactly what I’m after.
Practicing Minor IV Superimposition on Bass
Why Change Now?
After becoming a parent, my bass practice time all but vanished. Energy went into other things, and my hands spent more time holding my kid than holding the neck of my bass.
Now that my daughter is older and sleeps better, I’ve been feeling the pull to get back into the shed. And if I’m starting fresh, why not shed habits as well as notes?
I don’t see autopilot as a bad thing — in fact, it frees you to focus on phrasing, tone, rhythmic feel, and dynamics. But sometimes autopilot also means circling the same musical block over and over.
And these days, I’m leaning on exploring new harmonic contexts and expanding my improvisation vocabulary.
The Practice Setup
I decided to keep one thing fixed:
Destination: F major tonic
Instead of thinking of the C7 as a V chord, I thought of it as a:
- minor IV sound (B♭ minor) superimposed over the V (C7 chord).
This shift instant