GUITARU.com Super Lesson Supplement

Tranposing The Minor Pentatonic Scale To G

In this study you'll be working with the sound, theory and 5 logical, succesive positions of the G Minor Pentatonic Scale. You'll be thinking and playing the same way you did in keys of E and A but your goal here is to gain a greater command over new keys. Use the animation below memorize the names of the notes in the G Minor Pentatonic Scale and get the sound in your ears.

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Of course, use your music note book to copy and memorize the Minor Pentatonic Scale theory with the chart below.

scale degrees
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
1
G Major Scale
G A
B
C D
E
F#
G
scale degrees
1
2
b3
4
5
b6
b7
1
G Minor Scale
G
A
Bb
C
D
Eb
F
G
G Minor Pentatonic Scale G Bb C D
F
G

Once again, 'jump right in' by improvising with and visualizing all the members of the G Minor Pentatonic Scale on the guitar. As you do remember to construct your new skill set slowly. Start out with going immeiately to the Root Note of every new scale pattern and composing a short but melodious phrase which contains 3 or 4 notes. Play your creation in each new scale shape. Repeat this process until you have several long, interesting melodic ideas you can easily play in any position.

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The Five Positions Of G Minor Pentatonic...

This course ultimately is teaching you a system of thinking about scale shapes. The thought we're dealing with here are designed to help you become an excellent guitarist. One of the required skills is to solo in any key, in the course of a jam session, rehearsal or performance you'll nedd to be thinking on your feet, changing keys often and effortlessly -sometimes even 2 or 3 times within the course of a single song. This series of training exercises in developing exactly the skills you'll need in exactly the ways you'll need to use them. As you do the exercises keep these goals in mind:

  • Get the sound of the exercise and therefore the Minor Pentatonic Scale in your ear through careful listening.
  • Get the shape of the scale in your minds eye with paying special attention to the lowest pitched Root Note.
  • Get the physical feeling of playing the scale exercises, in tempo with a comfortable flow through your fingers.
  • Memorize the 5 scale patterns, use the play along exercises to force a tempo.
  • Learn what sound to expect of the scale in different soloing situations by improvising to the play along exercises.

Open Position...

Every key is a little unique even within a system of uniformity. The G Minor Pentatonic scale found in the open position can be an interesting and exciting scale to use because of the possibilities presented by the open strings.

Third Position..

When playing the G Minor Pentatonic scale, the main, most favored or Root Six box pattern falls in the third position. As stated earlier, you'll very often need to default to this fingerinng pattern especially in Rock, R&B, Pop, Funk, and Blues playing -thinking of the third position as where the key of "G" primarily resides.

Expansion Exercises...

The third position G Minor Pentatonic scale provides a wealth of opportunities when combined with the open position scale pattern. The use of open strings and fetted notes from two different patterns can give the Key of G a special highly rhythmic and funky yet smooth quality. The fact that the idea has 3 notes on every string makes a triplet feeling (Blues) a natural choice for our first example. The same way of creating licks (melodic device) can be applied to a variety of styles and situations. In the next example, you see the same melodic device being applied th a 16th note Funk style tune. Your job will be to learn the solo in the video completely by ear.

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Fifth Position...
The fingering pattern in the 5th position has its lowest pitched Root Note on String Four. Because of its close proximity to the Root Six box pattern studied in the previous example, this scale is often thought of the 'upper extention' of that main, most important Root Six box pattern. The "G" Root Note on String Six is included for use as a point of reference.
Eighth Position...
The G Minor Pentatonic fingering pattern in the 8th position should be one of the new scale to add to your comfort zone. As a Root Five scale it serves as a good lower extention for the Root Five G Minor Pentatonic box pattern -'a first line of defense thought'.
Tenth Position...
In the Tenth Position is found the Root Five G Minor Pentatonic box pattern, one of the two fingering patterns that this course has taught you to think of when in a situation requiring a Pentatonic Scale -what we've been calling a -'a first line of defense thought'.
Twelfth Position...
A scale exactly one octave higher than the scale we started brings our exercise full cricle. The twelfth Position is a Root Six scale pattern and is also thought of as the rear extention of the most important and well known Root Six box pattern.

Expansion Exercises...

the iagram to the right illustrates the thought process we suggest you first engage in when faced with a need for a Minor Pentatonic Scale:

  • First thought -Locate the Root 6 & Root 5 patterns.
  • New thought -Work with the 1st choice Root 6 box pattern and its upper and lower extentions.

Use this illustrationas you while practice with the play along exercises just below. as you play, try to focus on forcing yourself to shift between the different patterns.

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