| When you learn to improvise you have most | | | | 2. Use correct left hand fingerings. That means |
| likely come across various guitar scales. But, how | | | | that you play the notes on the first fret with |
| do you practice guitar scales in order to use them | | | | your left hand index finger, the notes on the |
| in your playing? In this lesson you will learn how to | | | | second fret with your middle finger and the notes |
| make music of scales! | | | | on the third fret with your ring finger. |
| What is a pentatonic scale? | | | | 3. Play small sequences using only a few of the |
| A common major scale consists of seven notes. | | | | notes in the scale. For example: |
| A C-major scale for example have these seven | | | | 05 35 04 24 04 35 05 or: |
| notes: | | | | 23 12 32 01 31 12 23 |
| C D E F G A B | | | | 4. Work on creating melodies using the scale. This |
| The note after the B is a C and the scale starts | | | | will help you understand where the notes you |
| over again in another octave. A pentatonic scale | | | | hear in your head are on the fretboard and also |
| consists of five notes. In a pentatonic C-major | | | | make your pentatonic improvisations more |
| scale the notes F and B are omitted. This makes | | | | musical and enjoyable for yourself and your |
| for less collisions between scale notes and notes | | | | prospective audience. |
| in the chords used. In other words, you can use a | | | | 5. Improvise together with chords. As you work |
| pentatonic scale together with more chords. | | | | with the A-minor pentatonic scale you can use |
| The A-minor pentatonic scale | | | | chords to make the guitar solo improvisations |
| This scale consists of the five notes A C D E G | | | | more interesting. Here are two chords that you |
| If we play these notes in the first position on the | | | | can use together with the notes: |
| guitar you will have the following sequence of | | | | A-minor: 05 24 23 12 01 |
| notes: | | | | D-major: 04 23 32 21 |
| 05 35 04 24 03 23 | | | | As your probably remember, the first number |
| The first number tells you which fret to press | | | | indicates the fret and the second number the |
| down. The second number indicates which string | | | | string to play. When you play the chords you can |
| to play. 05 means that you play the open fifth | | | | strum them from the lowest sounding string to |
| string, that is, without pressing down a fret. The | | | | the first string. For example, strum the A-minor |
| first string is the bottom string when you play. | | | | chord and improvise a few notes using the |
| We will now play the A-minor pentatonic scale in | | | | pentatonic scale. Then play the D-major chord and |
| the first position of your guitar. The whole scale | | | | continue to improvise. Play the A-minor chord |
| from the sixth to the first string will look like this: | | | | again and continue in this way. |
| 06 36 05 35 04 24 03 23 12 31 01 31 | | | | Improvisation is a form of composition and the |
| In this scale sequence you will find the note A in | | | | musical value depends on how well we know |
| two positions. That is, on the fifth open string and | | | | where the notes are on the fret, how focused |
| on the second fret third string. | | | | we are in the creative process, how well we have |
| What can you do with this scale? | | | | mastered patterns and licks that are building |
| 1. First I suggest that you commit this scale to | | | | blocks that can be used to create music, our |
| memory and that you practice playing it from the | | | | feelings and many more elements in the musical |
| lowest note to the highest and then back again. | | | | process. |