By Ken Volpe
This is Lesson #21 in a series on Guitar Improvisation. Last week in Lesson #20 we started discussing Option 3 for improvising. In this week’s lesson we will continue to explore Option 3.
By now you have started to get used to utilizing Option 3; playing a separate scale for each chord. There is one issue that occurs when using Option 3. When switching scales, as we learned in last week’s lesson, you are jumping around the neck. You are going from the 2nd fret to the 7th fret to the 9th fret, etc. This creates three problems. Problem number one, jumping scales/positions increases your chances of landing on bad notes or “clams.” Problem number two is that jumping positions can tend to sound strange to your ear. There is not as much melodic continuity. And problem number three is that jumping positions can have an effect on your timing. If you are playing a song with a fast tempo, jumping across the neck can result in being late for the beat.
What is the solution? The answer is for you to play the 3 separate Pentatonic Scale forms (F# Pentatonic, B Pentatonic, C# Pentatonic) while staying in one position. Whew! Don’t freak yourself out by trying to fully grasp this concept; this will all make sense to you down the road.
Play the following: (see diagrams)
FOR: A Major chord use Form 1 of F# Minor Pentatonic Scale
Form 1 of F# Minor Pentatonic starts from the 2nd fret
FOR: D Major chord use Form 4 of B Minor Pentatonic Scale
Form 4 of B Minor Pentatonic starts from the 2nd fret
FOR: E Major chord use Form 3 of C# Minor Pentatonic Scale
Form 3 of C# Minor Pentatonic starts from the 2nd fret
The following statements from Lesson 20 still apply.
The A Major chord contains notes A, C#, E
All 3-chord tones exist in the F# Minor Pentatonic Scale.
There are 2 scale tones that are not in the chord. These notes are: F#, B
The D Major chord contains notes D, F#, A
All 3-chord tones exist in the B Minor Pentatonic Scale.
There are 2 scale tones that are not in the chord. These notes are: B, E
The E Major chord contains notes E, G#, B
All 3-chord tones exist in the C# Minor Pentatonic Scale.
There are 2 scale tones that are not in the chord. These notes are: C#, F#
This will be very tricky at first but once again, if you stick with applying what you’ve just learned, it will become second nature to you.
In next week’s lesson we will continue to further explore Option 3. I’ll see you all at the next lesson.
Contact Ken: [email protected]
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