Subscribe To This Site

Guitar Scales

Here you will learn the patterns to the most famous Guitar Scales.

A scale is a series of notes composed of different intervals within an octave. It has as many patterns or modes as the amount of notes it is composed of.

For example, the Major Scales has 7 notes to the octave and thus 7 patterns. Once referring to a scale in a specific key, the notes don't vary from mode to mode, what varies is the note in which you begin.

For example, a Major Scale in C is composed of the notes C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C. The first mode would be C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C. And the second mode would be D, E, F, G, A, B, C, D. The notes are the same. To play the second mode or pattern of a scale, just start in the second note, the third mode starts in the 3rd note and so on...

Starting with the most basic, the Pentatonic Scale is a music scale with 5 pitches (or notes) to the octave. It's one of the most widely used in the world. Its application ranges from genres like jazz and blues to country and rock music. It's the first scale I learned and I suggest you do the same since the fingering is extremely easy and the patterns are easy to remember.

After dominating the Pentatonic Scale move on to the Minor, Major or Blues. Unlike the Pentatonic, these have 6 and 7 pitches to the octave. Try a few modes of each and approach the one you like the most. I went for the Blues Scale, then the Minor and Major Scales.

Once you learn the Minor Scale, the Major Scale is a breeze. Just add ½ a step (the equivalent to one fret) to the 3rd, 6th and 7th notes of the Minor Scale and you’re all set; that's the Major Scale. Don’t get confused and go crazy trying to learn all the scales and all the modes in a week. I use the Minor and Blues Scales 90% of the time and it works out great for improvising solos.

This example illustrates how the strings and frets are presented in guitar scale tabs.

Scale Chart Explanation

Unlike reading regular guitar tabs (where numbers placed in a vertical position means to play the notes simultaneously), when reading scales tablatures, all notes are played one at a time. It is tabbed in this manner to make it easier to visualize the structure of the pattern. Play each note from left to right from the 6th string to the 1st and then back up. You may also see guitar scale modes transcribed with dots instead of numbers. In this case a number by the side of the graph indicates on which fret the mode should begin (if referring to a specific key). The structure of the pattern is the same, it doesn't matter in what key you are playing the scale.

All scale patterns in the following examples start in “A”; the fifth fret. Why?? Because it is a comfortable starting position and it helps avoid going too high up the neck to the last few frets where it becomes uncomfortable to play the last few modes.

To play in another key, just move the first mode of the scale to that key and begin your patterns from there on.

Click over the name of the scale to view the Video and Tablature.

- Pentatonic Scale
- Blues Scale
- Minor Scale
- Major Scale

A cool tool you can use to keep your tempo while practicing the different patterns is the Metronome. Experiment at low speeds until you can play the modes cleanly, then increase the speed.

For more complex and elaborate guitar scales and a very cool guitar scale finder tool, visit this guitar scale tablature website.

Return from Guitar Scales to Home Page