Chapter One: Minor Pentatonic ScalesTo introduce a novice guitar player to the world of rock music requires that he learn a series ofscales, which we can call the tools of the trade. The most important of these are both major andminor pentatonic. For this chapter we will be considering minor pentatonic only. The word“pentatonic” implies that there are five notes in these scales, and that is correct. Once learned, theplayer can immediately start improvising rock guitar. The notes in a pentatonic scale are as follows.Let’s look at an A Minor pentatonic.A Minor PentatonicIt is important that if you are going to learn to improvise with this scale that you learn how itsounds. So, let us deconstruct this scale and look at the intervals that make up a minor pentatonicscale.NoteACDEGIntervalRootMinor ThirdPerfect FourthPerfect FifthMinor SeventhAs a musician, you should take every opportunity to improve your ears. It is important that that yourecognise and can sing back any interval. This is tricky and can take a good deal of practice. It ishowever the basis of improvisation. If you hear a series of notes in your head, you must be able totranslate that onto the guitar. To do this you have to train your ear. Try playing and learning thesound of the Minor Pentatonic scale and then, sing it back to yourself. Practice it until you get itright.Now we must learn the Minor Pentatonic scale thoroughly, up and down the neck. There are fivepositions to learn, after which the first pattern repeats an octave higher. If you look at pattern 1,you will see that all the notes are spread out over four frets. You should use the fingers on your lefthand accordingly, first fret, first finger, second fret, second finger and so on. To play these scalesyou must use all four fingers. Sometimes, as in pattern 3, a position shift is required. In this case,on the third string, you must shift down a fret, and then back up on the second. When playing thesescales, always start and end on the root note (the red notes, the F in this case). Start on the root,go all the way up, then all the way down and back up and end on the note you started with.
Pattern 1Pattern 2Pattern 3Pattern 4Pattern 5
Playing TechniquesInitially, when learning these scales, pick alternately down-up-down-up with your right hand. Alwayspractice with a metronome, increasing the tempo setting as you achieve accuracy and speed. Nevermove on until you can play each scale accurately, without making any mistakes. Speed will comeover time with familiarity.Once you can play each scale picking alternately, you should the start again, this time howeverusing hammer-ons and pull-offs. In your soloing, it is far more likely that you will use this approach.What follows is a series of examples that use the Minor Pentatonic scale in a classic rock situationwith some of the more common techniques, such as string bending.Exercise 1For this exercise we use the pattern 1, however we change the key to A minor. Therefore we movethe pattern up four frets so that it starts on the fifth fret. This exercise is a simple phrase that useshammer-ons & pull-offs. It also features a full bend on the second string from a G, a tone up to anA. It is very important when bending notes to pitch the note accurately, so the bend to the A musthit the pitch precisely. Also bend strings using your third finger supported by your second finger.Exercise 2Similarly to exercise one, this piece is also in A minor and features hammer-ons and pull-offs. Thistime there is a full bend on the G third string at the end of the second bar. The triplets create ashuffle blues feel.
Exercise 3This exercise is in E minor. It is played using pattern 4, which requires that you move the shapedown a semi-tone from F to E starting with the root note on the 7th fret, fifth string. It is a slightlyfunky line, more like a riff. If features a release-bend in the second bar. This requires that you strikethe string once it has been bent up a full tone, and then release the bend downwards.Exercise 4In this exercise the line uses two patterns, patterns 1 and 2. It uses a slide in bar 2 to move fromone position to the next. It also features slurs quite heavily.Exercise 5For this exercise we use three bends on each of the top three strings. All the bends, are full bendsand bend up a tone. Once again make sure that you hit the pitch accurately. The exercise is in Aminor using pattern 1.
Exercise 6This is a riff in E minor that uses notes from patterns 2 and 3. It also uses the low open E string. Becareful to play the slurs in he last two beats of the second bar correctly. These ideas were typical ofthose used by Jimi Hendrix.Exercise 7This exercise is in D minor and features notes from patterns 4 and 5. In this case pattern 4 starts onthe fifth fret. Play through the patterns in the correct key before trying the piece.Exercise 8This exercise is in A minor and features slides from one pattern to the next going from fret three allthe way up to fret fifteen with a bend up to the highest pitch of the phrase.At one point or other this exercise features all 5 patterns.
Exercise 9This final piece incorporates many of the ideas discussed in this chapter combined into one piece. Itis in A minor and uses four of the minor pentatonic patterns.Copyright belongs to Andy Drudy. Use by permission only.www.zama.co.ukContact: caesar@zama.co.uk
Chapter One: Minor Pentatonic Scales To introduce a novice guitar player to the world of rock music requires that he learn a series of scales, which we can call the tools of the trade. The most important of these are both major and minor pentatonic. For t
The best place to start is with the most universal scale the minor pentatonic scale. The Pentatonic scale: The pentatonic scale is a five note scale (penta five), technically speaking any group of five notes would qualify to be a pentatonic scale, however the most common pentatonic scales are the minor pentatonic and major pentatonic scales.
The Pentatonic Scale on Piano 10 The Pentatonic Scale and the CAGED System for Guitar 11 Hearing Pentatonic Scales 12 Beyond the Major Pentatonic 13 . seventh chords, minor or major scales, church modes, and more. Soloing with the pentatonic scale over chord progressions is very comm
start. For example, if you use the C Major Pentatonic Scale, the matching minor pentatonic scale is the A minor pentatonic scale. It is 3 frets or semitones down from C. If you know your relative minor scales, A is the relative minor of C. Let’s take a look at two box patterns. Example of a Pentatonic Box Pattern – the Same Notes
pentatonic scale movement. Pentatonic-Based Speed Exercises After chromatic, the next pattern I used to work on speed were simple pentatonic scales. The easiest example is the minor pentatonic scale which, depending on the form, usually looks something like this: Simple example of a pentatonic guitar scale segment. (View Larger Image)
Chord Voicings C diminished (3 voicings) C augmented (3 voicings) Group A Scales (66 bpm) 1. Bb major 2. D major 3. G natural minor 4. B natural minor 5. G harmonic minor 6. B harmonic minor 7. Bb major pentatonic (right hand) 8. D major pentatonic (right hand) 9. G minor pentatonic (right hand) 10. B minor pentatonic (right hand) 11. C blues .
The Pentatonic Scale Cheat Sheet The Minor Pentatonic Scale Each shape of the pentatonic scale can be used as either a major, or minor scale. By using only three common minor chord shapes we can nearly cover the entire guitar neck. For each chord in the diagram below there is a primary pentatonic scale that fits right over the chord, and a
And, we now have Pattern #4 for the Minor Pentatonic scale. A MINOR PENTATONIC – PATTERN #5 Now on to our final pattern for the A Minor Pentatonic scale. Step #1 Step #3 – Shifting the Top Two Strings Up One Fret Step #1 – Choosing a Root Note
Ann Sutherland Harris, Professor of Italian Baroque Art Henry Clay Frick Department of the History of Art and Architecture . I am profoundly grateful to my doctoral committee (Ann Sutherland Harris, David Wilkins, Anne Weis, Kathleen Christian, Francesca Savoia and Dennis Looney) for having faith in me, for offering direction when needed, and for their ample doses of .