The pentatonic box, and how to
break out of it
Here's the famous pentatonic box, the first thing
most guitarists learn to play once they've nailed down the standard
fifteen:
i=index, m=middle, r=ring, p=pinkie, t=thumb
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If you think of your index finger as being on the root, this
is the A minor pentatonic scale. If you think of your pinkie
as being on the root, this is the C major pentatonic scale.
Both scales contain the same pitches: A, C, D, E and G. Play
them over Am and C chords to hear the difference.
This is a cornerstone of lead guitar playing because it falls
easily under the fingers, sounds good in a wide variety of musical
settings, and forms a nice memorable pattern on the fretboard.
But many guitarists get trapped in the pentatonic box, not wanting
to venture outside of it because they're rightly daunted by
the baffling variety of scales and fingerings they see in books.
Fortunately, by adding a couple of notes to the familiar box,
you can increase your scale vocabulary enormously, without driving
yourself crazy.
A note about learning these things and turning them into music:
you want to be able to run them up and down in order, of course,
but once you can do that, try picking out melodies, licks, patterns.
For example, go up and down playing every other note in the
scale, or every third or fourth. If you're improvising with
the scales, try not to always start and end in the same places.
Play these things slowly, evenly, and always try to make them
sound like music, even if you're just running up and down. Set
a nice drum loop up at an unchallenging tempo, keep yourself
relaxed, enjoy the way the notes sound when you play them cleanly,
and if you're struggling, play slower. Have fun!
A minor pentatonic to A blues
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A minor pentatonic:
A, C, D, E, G
A blues:
A, C, D, D#, E, G |
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A minor pentatonic to A natural minor
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A minor pentatonic:
A, C, D, E, G
A natural minor:
A, B, C, D, E, F,
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A minor pentatonic to A dorian
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A minor pentatonic:
A, C, D, E, G
A dorian:
A, B, C, D, E, F#,
G
same pitches as G major:
G, A, B, C, D, E, F# |
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A minor pentatonic to A harmonic minor
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A minor pentatonic:
A, C, D, E, G
A harmonic minor:
A, B, C, D, E, F,
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C major pentatonic to C major
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C major pentatonic:
A, C, D, E, G
C major:
A, B, C, D, E, F,
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C major pentatonic to C mixolydian
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C major pentatonic:
A, C, D, E, G
C mixolydian:
A, Bb, C, D, E, F,
G
Same pitches as F major:
F, G, A, Bb,
C, D, E |
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more cool scales you get free with A minor/C major
penta
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If you think of D as the root, this is the D mountain modal
scale. Try it over a droning D7. If you think of F as the root,
this is a collection of tones from F major - try it over an
F6 or Fmaj7 chord. If you think of Bb as the root, this a collection
of beautiful notes from Bb lydian - try it over a Bb6 or Bbmaj7
chord.
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