Hein Van de Geyn Page

Hein Van de Geyn Page Jazz bassist, educator & author of Comprehensive Bass Method. After a long career as a touring jazz bassist, Hein now lives in South Africa.

Hein is sharing his music, teaching, and digital books via Baseline Publishing.

During improvising of course, the ear—your ear—is the final judge. But interestingly, the brain—your understanding of th...
25/07/2026

During improvising of course, the ear—your ear—is the final judge. But interestingly, the brain—your understanding of the more abstract aspects of harmony—can greatly assist your hearing.
Enharmonic misunderstandings often create unnecessary confusion, causing the ear and the mind to fall out of sync. Imagine moving from a Db tonic chord to the VII moll-dur, notated as B7. Suddenly, flats become sharps, common tones seem to disappear, and familiar diatonic relationships become obscured. Your mental framework goes into overload, leaving you to rely solely on your ear to navigate the harmonic landscape.
Unless, of course, you choose not to think horizontally at all, treating each chord simply as the trigger to a fixed scale. In my opinion however, that is one of the least rewarding approaches to improvisation.
This booklet highlights the most common enharmonic pitfalls. It is a brief journey through a sometimes dark and confusing avenue, shedding light on issues that are often overlooked. The aim is to help you navigate harmonic progressions with greater musical insight, confidence and freedom.
PDF book available at:�https://www.baseline-publishing.com/product-page/09-enharmonics

Triads, more triads... and even more triads!Triads are among the most powerful building blocks for exploring the instrum...
18/07/2026

Triads, more triads... and even more triads!
Triads are among the most powerful building blocks for exploring the instrumental side of the bass. They help you dig deeper into a tonality, superimpose over all kinds of chord changes, and—perhaps best of all—keep you away from relying on endless, meaningless scalar passages.
They're satisfying to play and excellent for developing your technique, your ear, and your musical thinking.
This booklet explores all of these ideas and explains the concepts in a clear, practical way.
Available from Baseline Publishing: https://www.baseline-publishing.com/product-page/08-triads-and-more-triads

Dominant seventh chords are everywhere in the music we play. Unlike most other chord types, dominant chords can be colou...
11/07/2026

Dominant seventh chords are everywhere in the music we play. Unlike most other chord types, dominant chords can be coloured in a number of ways. But which colour should you choose; which 9th, which 13th? —and why?
The answer lies in the harmonic function of the chord within the key.
This booklet explores every possible dominant chord found in both major and minor tonalities, providing a thorough and systematic investigation that brings much-needed clarity. As your understanding grows, your ear develops alongside it, enabling you to make informed and confident harmonic choices.
Demystify. Discover. That is our motto.
Get your copy here:�https://www.baseline-publishing.com/product-page/40-dominant-chords

That magical thumb position—where the double bass truly begins to sing.And we all know the challenge: once you're in, ge...
04/07/2026

That magical thumb position—where the double bass truly begins to sing.
And we all know the challenge: once you're in, getting back out again isn't always easy. There are musical reasons for that, but also very practical, physical ones.
I wrote a booklet devoted entirely to this fascinating subject: how to enter and leave thumb position with confidence, seamlessly and without hesitation.
Moving into the thumb position also has its own idiosyncrasies. Yes, you can use the thumb as a guide on the way up - but you don't have to. It is perfectly possible to shift into the high register with the usual playing fingers and let the thumb simply arrive as a natural consequence of the movement.
It's a fascinating journey and a rewarding aspect of bass playing to explore. The booklet offers practical exercises and musical approaches that will help you develop a relaxed, reliable technique.
PDF available here: https://www.baseline-publishing.com/product-page/25-in-out-thumb-position

Man, sometimes I feel so handicapped. I started "old school" with high strings and 1-finger playing. My ear and my right...
28/06/2026

Man, sometimes I feel so handicapped. I started "old school" with high strings and 1-finger playing. My ear and my right hand were not in the same world. I made it happen somehow -- but always felt handicapped.
Since 1996 I worked on a smooth 2-finger right hand technique -- but the security needed while playing pulled me to my 1-finger playing with every gig I played.
Anyhow - finally - after a break of 15 years from being on stage, I cracked the nut. I am so happy when now I feel my right hand being a supple 2-finger engine.
All the methods of Simandl, Petracchi, Nanny of course were not dealing with pizz. playing.
The right hand: it's the ENGINE. It is NOT the sound though: the sound comes from the left hand. But the engine, the groove, the energy, the bounce .... that's all in the right hand and the right arm ..... What an exciting, never-ending voyage !!
The booklet about all this is available through Baseline Publishing: https://www.baseline-publishing.com/product-page/04-the-right-hand

I was very fortunate to have a wonderful violin teacher when I was 18-19 years old. He told me the secret of using inter...
20/06/2026

I was very fortunate to have a wonderful violin teacher when I was 18-19 years old. He told me the secret of using intermediate notes when changing position.
It leads to a SOLID change of positions, and TRUE legato playing; and I have used this technique all during my bass playing life.
I wrote a comprehensive PDF booklet about it. To be found at: https://www.baseline-publishing.com/.../03-intermediate...
Upwards and onwards ..... 😀

playing regularly again --- twice a week --- in my own village ..... what a joy to feel things coming to life again.Ever...
06/06/2026

playing regularly again --- twice a week --- in my own village ..... what a joy to feel things coming to life again.
Every SUN with my son Ben, excellent guitar player @ Camel Rock.
Every WED with my love Cyrille @ Sopra.
No travel time, no traffic jams, no parking issues, no wake-up calls, no soundchecks .... just arrive 5 minutes before showtime .... the Biggest joy !!!

Address

P. O. Box 43979
Scarborough
7975

Telephone

+27798950431

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