For rock guitar, youll want to learn to play the pentatonic scale, which supplies you with better melodic fodder. These patterns are the key to unlocking the power of the pentatonic scale on your guitar. When you play this scale, it sort of sounds like blues, but not quite. This entry was posted in resource and tagged 3 notes per string, arpeggio, chord, download, fingering, maj7, major 7th, minor pentatonic, pdf, pentatonic scale, positions, scale on october 12, 2014 by jens. To get this pattern in a different key just shift it. The natural minor is the aeolian mode of the relative major scale. As the name would suggest, the minor pentatonic scale contains 5 notes.
In this lesson youll learn the one scale that is responsible for about 95% of all the blues licks you hear the minor pentatonic and minor blues scale. However, we usually use the term referring to the pentatonic scales derived from the circle of fifths lesson soon, i. Mastering pentatonic scale theory welcome to the learning pentatonic scales page at gmc run by yours truly, the professor. Pentatonic scales contain five notes, which is how it gets its name penta5, tonic tones. It tabs out the pentatonic scales in all 12 major and minor keys. If you start at the g on the 3rd fret of the low e string youll get a g major pentatonic scale.
Show me chords that sound good with an e minor pentatonic scale. A minor pentatonic contains scale degrees 1, b3, 4, 5, and b7. Welcome to video four of the lead guitar quickstart series. Sitemap guitar scale major pentatonic pattern 15 fingering major pentatonic scale pattern 15 fingering in a major root. Since most players are far more familiar with the minor pentatonic scale shapes, this is an easy cheat for getting the major pentatonic notes under your fingers. Try playing up and down the a minor pentatonic scale while playing the songs audio sample above. Various positions of the major pentatonic scale pattern 15 for guitars with fingerings on the guitar neck. The illustration below, shows all of the a minor pentatonic scale notes on the guitar fretboard. A pentatonic scale is made up of five notes per octave penta five. The pattern consists of 2 notes on one string and then 3 notes on the adjacent string, hence the 23 name.
For free music learning resources and video instruction, please visit. Cs relative minor pentatonic scale, a minor pentatonic, begins on the 6 th scale degree of the major pentatonic scale shown above. As the name denotes, major pentatonic is a major scale with just five tones like every scale, major pentatonic can be given a whole and half step interval formula that tells us the distance between each tone in the scale starting on a given root 1. Each one connects to the next and continues down and up the fretboard. Well also go over a muting technique in this lesson, so you can play a clean sound with every note. Printable downloadable major pentatonic scale guitar chart. Awesome minor pentatonic scale patterns on guitar beginner. If playback doesnt begin shortly, try restarting your device. As its name implies, the minor pentatonic scale is made of five notes penta means five and tonic means notes. There are many different ways of playing an a major pentatonic scale on guitar. Go ahead and play that note with the boxes, and you will see, your pentatonic scale turns into a pure blues scale. Im going to show you each position of this pentatonic scale and break it up a little so it will be easier to visualize. A pentatonic scale is a 5 note scale which can be used to create solos and melodies. Aminor pentatonic is a reasonable starting place with the minor pentatonic scale and has the 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th, and 14th fret respectively as the first fret on the different positions.
The a minor pentatonic comes from the natural minor scale. Learn the pentatonic scale on the guitar with this online guitar lesson from six string country. Be aware that the key signature of both scales will always be the same. Having read the theory behind the pentatonic scales, you should already be familiar with the basic intervals and use of the major and minor pentatonic scale. Several of the requests mentioned the a minor pentatonic scale specifically. Guitar major pentatonic scale chart printable pdf subject. Learn guitar scales in 8 easy steps with this free national guitar academy guide. This pdf method for guitar contains 40 ii v i jazz guitar lines with tab.
As you will see in this video i use the name of the pentatonic scales from the. Jun 28, 2016 this is a g minor pentatonic scale because the first note we play sixth string, third fret is a g note. Not only does it sound great, pentatonic scales are also easy to learn. Pentatonic scales for guitar a pentatonic scale has just 5 notes. As you will learn, these patterns can be transferred to all keys. And its not that you want to know all music theory. But, just enough to help give meaning to fretboard movement. Below is a download link for the pentatonic scale pdf. But by all means, practicing the 3 notes per string scale forms with the segovia scales as well can be a great all around workout.
Com the 5 patterns of the major pentatonic scale for guitar. The major and minor scales may be musiceducation stalwarts, but they sound a bit academic when used over chord progressions. Jun 19, 2019 from the basic pentatonic scale guitar fretboard pattern to improvising using minor pentatonic scales all over the guitar neck. Intermediate guitar lesson major pentatonic scales. Most guitar players learn pattern 1 first as its an easy pattern to learn. A better way to learn the major pentatonic scale on guitar. Below in tab is the a pentatonic minor scale in its most popular pattern the e minor scale pattern with its root on the 5th fret. The last scale shape begins with your fourth finger on the 15th fret. The first position e shape its because its the most comfortable shape to play in.
Because this pattern has an e as the first note this is pattern 1 of the e minor pentatonic scale and all other minor pentatonic scales. Get your free instant download of the pdf version of this guide now. There is a major pentatonic scale and a minor pentatonic scale. The shapes of the major pentatonic scale are exactly the same as those of the. The minor pentatonic scale has 5 patterns along the guitar neck that act as pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and provide a fret board path of what notes to play in a song or key. Try to follow the picking indication from the video for now and dont forget the pdf download for the lesson as well.
I picked up my guitar and played along to your tabs, actually learnt the pattern. Jun 22, 2016 a minor pentatonic scale 1st position 5th fret the pentatonic scale is about as straightforward a scale as you can get. Simply move the minor pentatonic scale 3 frets down and youll. The right kind of music theory gives us a better understanding of the scales we play and why we play them. Dominant chords have a major third and a minor seventh b7. There are three ways youll want to learn your major pentatonic scale forms. Meter, scales, and key signatures because the white keys running from c to the next c an octave higher form a sequence of notes that have minor 2nds only between ef the 3rd and 4th notes and bc the 7th and 8th notes, musicians call that series of notes a c major scale. Language sitemap guitars scales major pentatonic pattern 15 fingerings major pentatonic scale pattern 15 fingerings in a major root. If music is your middle name, then musical instruments are sure to adorn your. Scale pentatonic minor 1,b3,4,5,b7 fullth pattern root note a guitar tuning.
That is because the blue note is not part of the pentatonic scale. How to play the pentatonic scale on guitar dummies. In this lesson were going to be focusing on one of the most popular guitar scales, the a minor pentatonic scale. The 5 minor pentatonic scale patterns learning to play. They are usually the first scales beginner guitarists learn to play. The process of fi nding the relative minor scale from the 6th degree of the major scale will hold true with any major scale.
There are a few reasons that the penatonic scales are the short cut for the scales. Scale diagrams can also be labeled with either letters or scale degrees. If you want to learn scales then you need to practice them. For your convenience, i have included a pdf of all the pentatonics. The fretboard is shown with the lowest pitch string at the bottom and the highest pitch string at the top unless youve tuned your instrument differently. As the name implies, a pentatonic scale is a scale made up of five penta. Pentatonic scales pdf and instructional video guitar. Pdf total guitar the ultimate scale book guilherme.
Here is a video that shows how to play the pentatonic scale in its 1st position across the guitar neck and how to use it. The minor pentatonic scale by paul tauterouff the minor pentatonic scale is one of the most commonly scales used in rock, blues, country and jazz music. Although the pentatonic scale is not the only scale available for playing rock lead, it is. Once learned, the player can immediately start improvising rock guitar.
Just click the sheet youre interested and it will open as a pdf for you to download or print straight from your browser. The easiest way to get to know the pentatonic scale on the guitar is to begin working in the key of e minor, because it uses all the open strings on the guitar and is very common in popular music. Pentatonic scale shape exercises around the fretboard. It only includes five notes rather than the usual seven, so the construction or pattern of a pentatonic scale on your fret board is a lot simpler but with the pentatonic scale its not so much about the notes youre playingwell, of course, you still have. The e minor pentatonic scale the e minor blues scale. Any scale of five notes per octave can be regarded as a pentatonic, hence its name penta. Learn the pentatonic scale guitar secrets, free online.
Show me chords that sound good with a d minor pentatonic scale. How to play the pentatonic scale beginner guitar hq. It is now time to learn how to use the minor pentatonic scale, which is a must if you want to learn to play lead guitar and improvise this practical guide to using the minor pentatonic scale will be of true benefit to you once you are. Use the e minor pentatonic scale when playing 12 bar blues in. As its name implies the major pentatonic scale is made up of five notes. The root note of each shape determines the name of the scale. Now lets play the g minor pentatonic scale in the second position. Dec 04, 2009 we will be using these scale forms in the coming lessons along with the understanding keys lesson material to form a complete picture of pentatonics in every key all over the guitar neck.
In this lesson, well be learning the major pentatonic scale, which is very versatile and used in many music genres. Major pentatonic scales in open position closed mobile major pentatonic scales forms horizontal. Scale pentatonic minor 1,b3,4,5,b7 5th pattern root note a guitar tuning. Lets first learn the building blocks of major pentatonic and where it comes from. Guitar scales the 6 most common guitar scales guitar orb.
Major pentatonic scale pattern 15 for guitars fingerings. This article and interactive web app help you learn all of the pentatonic scale diagrams. The pentatonic scale is use primarily used for soloing. Pentatonic scales have found their home in the hearts of jazz, blues, and rock musicians everywhere. Guitar scales the pentatonic scale is a favorite of many guitarists and its easy to see why. The e minor pentatonic scale consists of the notes egabd. If you want to learn guitar scales properly, read on. Mastering pentatonic scale theory 3831 guitar lessons.
I can take notes from this scale to create a solo or melody. The first position of the minor pentatonic scale that well learn, will be the a minor pentatonic scale at. Major pentatonic scale pattern 15 for guitar fingering. The awesome part is that they contain the same note intervals with differing roots, so the patterns are the same. This, and every, scale can be thought of in terms of a formula that shows how the scale can be derived from the notes of the major scale which is the reference point for most things music theory related. If you enjoy this article you should check out our master guide. For this chapter we will be considering minor pentatonic only.
Dec, 20 a lot of guitar players use only one pentatonic position shape. The major pentatonic scale guitar shapes and theory. The lessons on this page are geared towards helping you build a strong understanding of each of the various pentatonic scales, how they are built, how they are related and how they relate to chords and arpeggios when. In my attempt to explain guitar scale theory, ill use enough theory to thoroughly discuss the concept while avoiding. You can get more diagrams in the tuning of your choice by using my interactive web app here. Play guitar solo in any key with 5 major pentatonic scale.
Intermediate guitar lesson pentatonic scale picking. The word pentatonic implies that there are five notes in these scales, and that is correct. The pentatonic scales are a staple of modern rock, blues and pop music. Click graphic to play audio deactivate arrows on your keyboard for page navigation with alt k. Thats great if you start out with soloing, in fact its better to stay with that for a while to explore all the possibilities and to really be able to improvise with that one shape.
The minor pentatonic scale is a highly popular and versatile scale. The chords formed from the major scale are commonly used to form chord. The root notes a in these examples are circled so that you can learn their locations. The pdf is for members only, so youll need to login to download it. Strum a g minor chord, then play the notes of the g minor pentatonic scale. The 5 major pentatonic scale shapes positions guitarhabits. As the name suggests, the scale is used heavily in blues but is also used in rock. Once you know the five major pentatonic scale shapes, you automatically know the five minor pentatonic scale shapes.
Guitar scales major pentatonic extension scale guitar. The minor pentatonic scale from the 3rd of the chord. The basics of the minor pentatonic scale for guitar soundfly. The major pentatonic scale is similar to major diatonic scale 7 notes per octave, but without the fourth and the seventh note. This pdf contains the diagrams for all the major and minor pentatonic scales in all keys for guitar in standard tuning. The 2nd note of any minor pentatonic scale is the root of the relative major pentatonic scale. A guitar lesson on my favourite minor pentatonic scale pattern to get you. Dec 05, 2009 these scale forms are also the way you will see that most advanced guitar scale technique is performed on the guitar because of how well they lay out across the fretboard and the consistency of the picking. This, and every, scale can be thought of in terms of a formula that shows how the scale can be derived from the notes of the major scale which is the.