Lesson 10. Guitar Scales


Welcome to lesson 10 on guitar scales. In this lesson you will learn the remaining fingerings for the pentatonic scale. When you know all 5 of these it makes it possible for you to play up and down the entire length of the fretboard, greatly expanding your range.

It also makes it possible to switch keys and keep your hand in one general area of the fretboard. This is a big advantage to have in your playing as you progress. As a matter of fact, this is one of the most important reasons to learn many different guitar scales, not just the pentatonic scale.

As you learn these fingerings her are a few essential points to keep in mind.

  1. Memorize one position at a time. When learning guitar scales, or anything else for that matter it is easier to digest in small pieces. There is a joke that goes; How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
  2. As always use a metronome. Practice with a slow steady tempo and gradually increase your speed.
  3. Apply the patterns from previous lessons to these fingerings of the pentatonic scale. Practicing patterns is the best way that I know to really learn and absorb guitar scales.
  4. Create your own licks out of these new fingerings and seek out the licks of your favorite players. Always try to expand your vocabulary. The internet is full of tab sites full of things to practice.
  5. Find other musicians and friends to jam with. Put any new materal that you learn to use right away, whether it is guitar chords, guitar scales, arpeggios, etc. The sooner and the more you apply your learning the quicker it becomes part of who you are.
  6. This is the most important thing to know about the following diagrams. The pentatonic scale can be either major or minor depending on which note you consider to be the tonic. In the following scale diagrams, the red dots are the minor tonic and the blue dots are the major tonics.

    7. Pentatonic Scale Diagrams And Fingerings


That wraps up lesson 10. If you have any questions or comments contact me at bob@learn-guitar-online.com. Thanks for reading and visiting.

Click here for guitar scales lesson 11.