Guitar Scales for playing Blues, Rock & Shredding
In the beginners section of the free online guitar lessons we discussed open scales and various ways of playing all different major scales, natural minor scales, harmonic minor scales, jazz minor scales and also the chromatic scale. However in the open position the number of notes per string vary, so as to keep it simple, without having to stretch your fingers, which is why it is not possible to have evenly distributed notes on each string.
In the intermediate guitar course, you will learn to play all the guitar scales with notes distributed evenly across all strings which will enable you to have licks, patterns, ideas that can be repeated across different sets of strings. It also allows you to go across the fretboard very fast, which is why they are indispensable for shredders. The scales that are discussed in this section are 2 note per string scales like the Pentatonic scales. Pentatonic scales have 5 different shapes across the fretboard and the notes can be evenly distributed across all 6 strings. This is one of the most popular scales & is widely used across all genres of music. The box shape that is formed by playing 2 notes per string, while playing a pentatonic scale, makes it extremely useful & convenient to create blues & rock phrases.
In the 3 note per string scales section you will find Major scales and modes along with harmonic minor scales and modes and the jazz minor scales & modes as well. This shape is one of the most popular shapes among shred guitar players like Paul Gilbert, Vinnie Moore, Steve Morse etc. 3 notes per string shapes allow you to use alternate picking very effectively letting you play licks at a very fast tempo. Colorado Bulldog by Mr.Big is a great example of using 3 note per string scale ideas to create an excellent sounding intro guitar motif.
If 3 note per string ideas make for great tools for alternate picking, 4 note per string guitar scales are great tools to play legato using slides. They also allow you to play 3 full octaves of certain keys covering the entire fretboard.
Make sure you learn each and every scale and mode well enough by starting off at a slow speed and gradually increasing the speed over a period of time. Be sure to practice all the exercises mentioned in this section to get a good command over all the scales and modes and pay close attention to the fingering & picking while playing each scale.
Below are the scales that are discussed & quick links to them in this section
In the intermediate guitar course, you will learn to play all the guitar scales with notes distributed evenly across all strings which will enable you to have licks, patterns, ideas that can be repeated across different sets of strings. It also allows you to go across the fretboard very fast, which is why they are indispensable for shredders. The scales that are discussed in this section are 2 note per string scales like the Pentatonic scales. Pentatonic scales have 5 different shapes across the fretboard and the notes can be evenly distributed across all 6 strings. This is one of the most popular scales & is widely used across all genres of music. The box shape that is formed by playing 2 notes per string, while playing a pentatonic scale, makes it extremely useful & convenient to create blues & rock phrases.
In the 3 note per string scales section you will find Major scales and modes along with harmonic minor scales and modes and the jazz minor scales & modes as well. This shape is one of the most popular shapes among shred guitar players like Paul Gilbert, Vinnie Moore, Steve Morse etc. 3 notes per string shapes allow you to use alternate picking very effectively letting you play licks at a very fast tempo. Colorado Bulldog by Mr.Big is a great example of using 3 note per string scale ideas to create an excellent sounding intro guitar motif.
If 3 note per string ideas make for great tools for alternate picking, 4 note per string guitar scales are great tools to play legato using slides. They also allow you to play 3 full octaves of certain keys covering the entire fretboard.
Make sure you learn each and every scale and mode well enough by starting off at a slow speed and gradually increasing the speed over a period of time. Be sure to practice all the exercises mentioned in this section to get a good command over all the scales and modes and pay close attention to the fingering & picking while playing each scale.
Below are the scales that are discussed & quick links to them in this section
2 Note per string scales
3 Note per string scales
1) F Major scales & modes (tablature)
2) A Harmonic minor & modes (tablature)
3) A Jazz minor & modes (tablature)
4) A minor blues scale (tablature)
5) 17 Licks & exercises based on F Major scale & Modes (tablature)
2) A Harmonic minor & modes (tablature)
3) A Jazz minor & modes (tablature)
4) A minor blues scale (tablature)
5) 17 Licks & exercises based on F Major scale & Modes (tablature)
4 Note per string scales
