GuitarLessonsScale - Pentatonic Scale

The pentatonic scale

The pentatonic scale is well known and widely used by guitarists: it’s often the first line they
learn. It is essential in rock or blues, so let’s learn it together.

The pentatonic
The minor pentatonic scale
The major pentatonic
Where to hear pentatonics?
All positions of the pentatonic

The pentatonic

PENTA means FIVE, TONIC means NOTE. A pentatonic so is a range that contains five notes, quite simply.
There is a large number of pentatonic scales. Nevertheless , there is a pentatonic scale that is more used than the
others, so much so that when a guitarist speaks of “the range pentatonic “it refers to her: the range
minor pentatonic.

The minor pentatonic scale

The fingers itch you, you want to play this range all from after ? Ok, here it is in diagram

The pentatonic minor scale of La with an octave

Now that we have played this scale, let’s see how she is built. Here are the intervals that make up this scale.

The minor pentatonic scale: interval scale

The diagram above represents the notes of the scale we have played and the intervals between them. You can play
this scale of notes on a single string for better understand this schema: the intervals that describe this
range are actually the spacings between each of the notes of scale. Remember that 1 Ton = 2 semitones = 2 boxes, and
1.5 Tons = 3 semitones = 3 boxes.

The pentatonic minor scale of La on a single string

Be careful, start with the empty rope! The round is small on the diagram, it’s true (but it’s to be sure to be focus)

Penta = 5 , so pentatonic scale have 5 notes. But why this scale is minor ?

It is a minor scale because the third note is a minor note = 3 half-tons.

Third minor in pentatonic scale on 1 string

And in the first position that we saw, the third minor is here:

thid minor in pentatonic scale

If the scale have a thid major , it will be a major scale.

Pentatonic on 2 octaves (full position)

This minor pentatonic scale can be repeated in acute and in the serious course. If we repeat it on
the upper octave, this is what we get.

The minor pentatonic scale on two octaves: tablature

This scale is La minor pentatonic scale. “Minor Pentatonic” is her name, and “La” because she
begins with the note La (string 5th case)

The major pentatonic

Let’s go now to the major pentatonic of La. It’s called “major” because the third that it contains (from its
first note) is major. But you already knew that. Here is this major pentatonic.

The major pentatonic scale on two octaves

And now, the intervals that make up the range major pentatonic. If you compare this scale
intervals with that of the minor pentatonic you maybe even notice something interesting …

The major pentatonic scale: scale

The major pentatonic scale on two octaves: tablature

To choose between the major pentatonic and the pentatonic minor, learn in priority the minor pentatonic. In the
rock and blues for example, we use it a lot more than the major pentatonic. I use it elsewhere in almost
all video courses on blues and rock. Also, we will see later on the page The Blues that add him a
single note will allow us to create blues sounds.

Where to hear pentatonics?

In Rock music in general.

Heartbreaker, LedZeppelin
Another one bites the dust, Queen
Always on the run, Lenny Kravitz
Bombtrack, RATM
etc…

All positions of pentatonic

Learning these 5 positions by heart should in no way be a priority: it is better to spend time learning to
ring a single position, such as on page the pentatonic or in the videos The range blues (for the
beginners), playing blues (with its guts), blues minors, Black magic women and many more than I
offers free on Youtube or at a very affordable price.

That said, if you want to go out, know the 5 positions will serve you.

Let’s start by studying the 5 positions of the pentatonic
minor.