{"id":773,"date":"2021-11-16T08:37:27","date_gmt":"2021-11-16T16:37:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.guitareo.com\/riff\/?p=773"},"modified":"2023-03-23T16:54:07","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T23:54:07","slug":"top-5-scales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.guitareo.com\/riff\/top-5-scales\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 5 Most Important Guitar Scales"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019ve ever had any interest in playing guitar solos, then scales are about to become your best friend. Almost every great guitar solo you\u2019ve heard comes from scales. This can be particularly daunting for beginner and intermediate guitarists because scales aren\u2019t as easy to make sense of as guitar chords.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So we\u2019ve made this guide for guitar players that are new to lead guitar and want to know the five most important scales and how to use them to play amazing guitar solos and licks. Let\u2019s not waste any more time and get into the first video lesson!<\/p>\n\n\n

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This video is a great overview of the five most commonly used guitar scales in music. These are the shapes that many of your favorite famous guitar solos are born from. Each one will be the \u201cA\u201d version of the scale; however, by simply shifting the shape up or down your fretboard you can play in any other key. We\u2019ll get into this more later in the guide. For now, let\u2019s get into the first shape!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And be sure to apply everything you learn in this lesson to music with this jam track:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Major Scale<\/strong>
If you\u2019re reading this, you\u2019ve probably heard the term \u201cmajor scale\u201d many times. Not only is it a scale shape for solos, but it\u2019s also a scale that makes up the foundation of all western music. If you\u2019d like a deeper dive on the major scale and its importance, you can check out our Guide To The Major Scale On Guitar<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are a number of different major scale shapes you can learn on the guitar, but this is probably the most common and definitely the most useful. Here\u2019s the scale diagram:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This major scale shape spans all six strings which makes it especially useful for crafting riffs and solos from. You\u2019ll notice there are three black notes in this scale. If you\u2019re not familiar with them from other diagrams, they are called root notes. Root notes are the notes that share the same name as the scale or chord. In this example, the root notes are A notes since it\u2019s an A major scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can see in the diagram that the seven-note major scale is repeated just over two full times and starts and stops with the black notes. This scale shape might take you some time to get down since there is only one point where the single string pattern is repeated. Try working on this scale two strings at a time. Once you get each pair committed to muscle memory, you can start combining them into the full shape. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Major Pentatonic Scale<\/strong>
The pentatonic scale is THE guitar scale. While it\u2019s used on just about every other instrument, it\u2019s especially effective on the guitar because of how the scale is laid out in a box-like shape. We have a full pentatonic scale breakdown available for you if you want to dig a little deeper. Check out our Guide To The Pentatonic Scale On Guitar<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The major pentatonic scale is almost exactly the same as the major scale. The only difference is the absence of two of the seven notes – hence the prefix \u201cpenta\u201d. Here\u2019s the shape:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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You can see that the major pentatonic scale is almost identical to the major scale shape you already know. The only thing you need to do here is leave out a few notes. The absence of these additional notes makes the entire shape only two notes per string. This makes it much easier to get under your fingers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Natural Minor Scale<\/strong>
The third essential scale is the natural minor scale. You can make a natural minor scale out of a major scale simply by lowering the third, sixth, and seventh scale degrees by a half step. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Don\u2019t worry too much about using this method to build the scale shape, however. We\u2019ve got the proper minor scale shape for you right here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is another scale that takes a little longer to get under your fingers since the strings have three notes each with the exception of the D string. Practice this scale two strings at a time before combining them together to play the full shape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Minor Pentatonic Scale<\/strong>
You already know what pentatonic means, and this is just the minor equivalent to the major pentatonic scale. It\u2019s the same as the natural minor scale but just missing a couple of notes. This is the easiest scale to physically play on the guitar and if you\u2019re only going to use one scale for soloing, this is the one! Here\u2019s the scale diagram:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The great thing about this scale is all the repetition from string to string. It\u2019s very easy to memorize and even easier to play. We go into more depth on the minor pentatonic scale in our Guide To The Pentatonic Scale On Guitar that we linked earlier in the article. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Blues Scale<\/strong>
The last of the five essential guitar scales is the blues scale. And don\u2019t worry, the blues scale is not only for playing the blues. It\u2019s great for just about every other genre as well! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This scale is a spitting image of the minor pentatonic scale with the addition of one note (two in the whole shape). This note doesn\u2019t diatonically occur in an A minor or A minor pentatonic scale. This is one of those \u201cspicy\u201d notes that adds some extra flavor. Check out the shape here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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And that\u2019s a wrap for the five essential guitar scales. Now that you\u2019ve got them down, we\u2019re going to jump into a lesson on some tips for how to use them!<\/p>\n\n\n