| Pattern 1 | Pattern 2 | Pattern 3 |
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| Pattern 4 | Pattern 5 |
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Before we get started, it is important that you understand the interpretation of the scale diagrams. Basically, a reddened cell on the fret board indicates a note to be played. If the reddened cell falls in the 'Open' region of the fretboard in the applet diagram, then that particular string can be played in the 'Open' position (i.e. no fingering required). Now that we've dispensed with the formalities, let's begin!
First, select the "F Pentatonic" scale by using the pull-down menu in the ScaleFinder applet at the top of the page. Notice that the "ROOT" note of Pattern 1 in the Pentatonic Scale Patterns table (immediately above) falls on the note "F" for this particular pattern. If you were jamming with some friends, and they told you they were playing a song in the key of F, you could position the ROOT of Pentatonic Pattern 1 over the F note on the low E string of your guitar, and you could use all the notes in the pattern to play a lead melody in F! Thus, the ROOT note of Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1 serves as an 'anchor' for playing that scale pattern.
As you've probably already realized, playing scales does involve some memorization. For example, in order to be able to use Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1 to play leads, you will have to memorize the relative positions of the notes in the pattern and you will have to become profficient in locating notes on the low E string so you'll know where to place the anchor for the pattern.
To practice Lesson 1, I recommend that you randomly think of a musical key (e.g., A, C#, D, G, etc.), locate that note on the low E string of your guitar, and play Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1 where the ROOT intersects with the note. You can use the ScaleFinder applet to verify the proper positioning of Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1. For instance, if the key you selected was "C#", use the ScaleFinder to display the "C# Pentatonic" scale. When you glance at the scale, the ROOT note of Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1 should fall on the C# note of your low E string. Do this for any and all keys until you are familiar with the notes on the low E string and with Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1.
At this point, you're probably a little confused by all those other reddened cells that 'pop-up' on the ScaleFinder every time you select a new Pentatonic Scale... Well, if you payed close attention, you noticed that the actual notes displayed in Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1 could also be played at other locations on the fret board. Thus, there are a total of five Pentatonic Scale Patterns which comprise all locations where all of the notes in the Pentatonic Scale for a particular key can be played. Now, take a good look at the Pentatonic Scale Patterns Table. Notice that the 'right-side' of Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1 becomes the 'left-side' of Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2. They fit together like pieces of a puzzle. So, let's stop and think about this for a minute. If you know what key a song is in and you can locate that key note on the low E string of your guitar, you can play Pattern 1 to compose a lead melody. Now, if you knew how Pattern 1 merged with Pattern 2, you would now have the notes available from Pattern 2 to compose your melody as well! If you look closely at Pattern 3, you notice that its 'left-side' becomes the 'right-side' of Pattern 2. And Pattern 4 merges with Pattern 3 and Pattern 5 merges with Pattern 4 and so on... If you were really careful when you looked at the Pentatonic Scale Patterns Table, you noticed that the 'right-side' of Pattern 5 becomes the 'left-side' of Pattern 1 and now we're right back where we started.
Thus, the five scale patterns fit together in a circular fashion. Once you've learned each of the five patterns and how they interconnect with the others, you're well on your way to playing Pentatonic leads up and down the neck of your guitar!! The key is being able to quickly position the ROOT of Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1, and then realizing the relative positions of the other scale patterns with respect to that first pattern.
Practice each of the Pentatonic Scale Patterns seperately without regard to key or their positions relative to the other scale patterns. Once you're comfortable with each of the five patterns, begin to merge the patterns on the fretboard. For example, play Pattern 1 and 'slide' into Pattern 2 and then back into Pattern 1. Once you're comfortable with Patterns 1 and 2, incorporate Pattern 3 into the mix, then Pattern 4, etc. Finally, begin to incorporate all of the scale patterns into a particular key. The best way to do this is to listen to some of your favorite music (slower music works better at first), figure out what key a particular song is in, and begin to play your patterns.
While Pentatonic Scales have five notes, Major Scales have seven. So, logic would dictate that Major Scales have two additional notes in each scale. The same rules apply as before, but now we add additional notes to each of the scale patterns (highlighted in pink below). The positioning of the Major Scales can also be determined by the ScaleFinder.
| Pattern 1 | Pattern 2 | Pattern 3 |
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| Pattern 4 | Pattern 5 |
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