Here is a wicked, easy way to Learn 1 major scale and 1 minor scale using only 1 scale pattern!
A quick way to get started learning scales as a guitarist is to learn the pentatonic scale – penta – 5. Five notes – Bam! Done! In the rock and blues world those 5 notes go along way! The scale pattern below will use a standard 7 note pattern to give us more options.
This technique focuses on learning 1 pattern for 2 scales – 1 major and 1 minor.
Compare the C Major scale to the A Minor scale:
- C Major: C D E F G A B C
- A Minor: A B C D E F G A
What similarities do you notice? If you recognized that they are all the same notes you are correct! The only difference in these scales is the relationship of the notes with the starting note or the root notes C and A.
So if you know the C Major scale then you also know the A Minor scale. You can play in 2 different keys with one pattern as long as you emphasis the correct root note to go along with the key.
I had a really cool guitar teacher with an informal style of teaching when I was first starting out. He taught me how to jam. He taught me an old school, rock and roll style 12 bar blues with a 1-4-5 chord progression:
Four bars of A(1), two bars of D(4), two bars of A(1), one bar of E(5), one bar of D(4) and one bar of A(1), and then tag the E(5) for 1 bar.
I’ve heard a bar also called a measure or a segment. In this case, 1 bar equals 4 beats. 1-4-5 – 1 is the key or root note. As the chords progress through the different positions the root note can shift. Progressing to D causes the A root note to shift to a D during that time. Knowing this helps you to change your scale patterns.
He would hold down the chords while I practice my leads and then we would switch and I would hold down the chords while he ripped it up on lead. Round and round we go! It was a lot of fun.
Memorize the pattern above. Spread your fingers out comfortably across the frets to cover the notes across each string. Try jamming to a standard 12 bar blues and tinker around with the notes and see how it sounds. Create a 3 or 4 note phrase and end on the root note to give the lick a smooth finish. There’s no stick rules here just have fun.
Try jamming with the songs below – A Minor blues.
T Bone Walker – T Bone Shuffle – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GsRzqbRvus
Lynyrd Skynyrd – Call Me The Breeze – 7/13/1977 – Convention Hall (Official) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQqioJKjzPs
Don’t Lie To Me Albert King with Stevie Ray Vaughan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZL2b4O3nz8
If you missed the part 1 of this article visit this link – Learning Scales On The Guitar 101 – Part 1 of 3 – Basics
Next up – Learning Scales On The Guitar 101 – Part 3 of 3 Octaves
- Octaves are soooo key to spreading the scale patterns across the neck!