History Main / FallingBass

* The {{Eagles}}' famous song "Hotel California" has an interesting subversion of this: The verse's chord progression is typical of the Falling Bass, but it keeps all the chords in root position. The result is this: [=Bm, F#, A, E7, G, D, Em, F#=].

* FryderykChopin's [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiwPzHJ-Pic Prelude in E minor]] from his set of 24 preludes in each key uses this, though it starts on the third scale degree and has a bunch of unusual chords.

* The "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkjQnoYj95w Crucifixus]]" from the Mass in B minor by JohannSebastianBach uses this as a four-bar ostinato bass-line pattern, in E minor. This was lifted from the cantata "Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen," which had it in F minor (as do Liszt's variations for piano and organ based on it).

* Music/EdvardGrieg's Ballade for piano (Op. 24) doesn't use the conventional chord progression, but the bass line of its theme begins by monotonically descending for eight bars minus an upbeat. The first variation begins similarly.

* In Antonio Vivaldi's violin concerto "Il piacere" (Op. 8 No. 6), the ritornello of the slow movement is a chromatic descent from the tonic to the fifth played in unison by strings.

* JohnLennon, "Mind Games"
* JimCroce's "Time in a Bottle" features three different variations of the Falling Bass. The first line of the verse is chromatic: D-C#-C-B-Bb-A. The second line switches to a minor diatonic scale: D-C-Bb-A-G-F. The chorus then runs the complete major diatonic scale: D-C#-B-A-G-F#-E
* {{Queen}}: a lot of their songs feature bass going progressively downward from root to seventh to sixth in an I-V-vi progression. See Bohemian Rhapsody, the ballad section, for an example of this.
* BillyJoel, "PianoMan". [=I, V6, IV6, I64, IV, I6, II7, V=] in C major.

* The bassline of the "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLMvAVyhm0c Alternia]]" theme (see ''{{Homestuck}}'') takes the five incremental half-steps down to ''so'' before taking a half-step up and a whole step up. The composer fully admits to the influence of ''VideoGame/{{Mother|1}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{EarthBound}}'', and this song is likely inspired by the "Mother Earth" theme (search above).

* The third opening theme of ''MagicKnightRayearth'' is similar to HotelCalifornia in that it features a chord progression typical of the Falling Bass but has the chords in root position.

* The "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkjQnoYj95w Crucifixus]]" from the Mass in B minor by JohannSebastianBach uses this as a four-bar ostinato bass-line pattern, in E minor. This was lifted from the cantata "Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen," which had it in F minor.

* The "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkjQnoYj95w Crucifixus]]" from the Mass in B minor by JohannSebastianBach uses this as a four-bar ostinato bass-line pattern, in E minor.

* The opening theme of ''{{Mother}}'', "Mother Earth", only uses four steps of the chromatic sequence faithfully, but it's still using the technique for its poignance.

* The bassline of the "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLMvAVyhm0c Alternia]]" theme (see ''{{Homestuck}}'') takes the five incremental half-steps down to ''so'' before taking a half-step up and a whole step up. The composer fully admits to the influence of ''{{Mother}}'' and ''{{EarthBound}}'', and this song is likely inspired by the "Mother Earth" theme (search above).

* The verse of TheBeatles' "[[Music/SgtPeppersLonelyHeartsClubBand Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds]]" has a version that skips from the first to the third note in the usual sequence.

* For diatonic sequences: [=I, V6, vi, V or iii6, IV, I6, ii, V=] in a major key, and [=i, VII or v6, VI, v or III6, iv, I6, ii° or ii or II, V=], possibly with [[{{harmony}} sevenths]] on the chords. Note that this is actually ''very'' close to the [=~Pachelbel's Canon Progression~=], which may have evolved from it. The bass line goes "do, ti, la, so, fa, mi, re, so"; yes, the last note isn't quite "falling", but that's how it usually works.

* The intro to ''VideoGame/MegaMan IV'' has basically this sequence, except that the sixth note is not scale degree 3 but scale degree 1.
* In ''MegaManZX'', "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt1pIjvKhuI En-trance Code]]", the music in trans server rooms, starts with this sequence, in C minor.

* The intro to ''Game/MegaMan IV'' has basically this sequence, except that the sixth note is not scale degree 3 but scale degree 1.

* LudwigVanBeethoven's "WaldsteinSonata", at the very beginning of the first movement. In C major.

* ''These Boots Are Made for Walkin''', written by Lee Hazlewood and recorded by Nancy Sinatra.
* The verse of TheBeatles' "LucyInTheSkyWithDiamonds" has a version that skips from the first to the third note in the usual sequence.
* The {{Eagles}}' famous song "HotelCalifornia" has an interesting subversion of this: The verse's chord progression is typical of the Falling Bass, but it keeps all the chords in root position. The result is this: [=Bm, F#, A, E7, G, D, Em, F#=].

* The bassline of the "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLMvAVyhm0c Alternia]]" theme (see ''{{Homestuck}}'') takes the five incremental half-steps down to ''so'' before taking a half-step up and a whole step up.

''As with all music tropes, please add examples in chronological order.''

* John Lennon's "Mind Games"

* John Lennon's "Mind Games"
* Procol Harum's "A Whiter Shade of Pale"