How to build scales on the guitar. What are scales and what are they for?

This article is intended for beginning solo guitarists who have just started conquering the first frets of the fretboard and are wondering where to start learning in order to quickly develop finger fluency, learn the placement of notes, achieve the correct sound production and finally play the “solos” of their cool idols shredders and bluesmen.

So where to start? The first step is the C major scale; on a guitar, of course, it can be played throughout the entire fretboard and in any position. But, as they say, everything has its turn. Let's start from the first - that is, from the first position. And it doesn’t matter whether you have an acoustic or electric guitar, no matter what musical direction you prefer, learning scales is a competent, right start for improvising, composing and playing melodies. From simple to complex; from simple four-bar melodies to rock symphonies.

Pick up a guitar, arm yourself with a mediator - let's start practicing!

It is worth noting that playing a scale (any kind, including this one) allows you to get rid of cramming the location of notes on the guitar neck - where is the note Do, where is Mi, where is Fa, etc. Memorization will occur in the process of studying, naturally and not forced. The main thing is that you need to play every note meaningfully.

Meet the C major scale on the guitar in one octave: it starts from C minor octave (fifth string, 3rd fret) and ends with C first octave (second string, 1st fret).

It sounds like this:

Designations

The scale is written in two ways: the top notation (which shows the treble clef and 4/4 time signature) is the notes; the bottom one (numbers on the lines) is tablature (indicates on which string and on which fret the note should be pressed).

Notes

Within the framework of this article, we will not go into the study of reading notes from a sheet, and will concentrate more on a purely practical issue - how to play. But, one way or another, if you are not familiar with this science, it makes sense to have a textbook on musical notation and fill in the gap of missing knowledge (the basics at the first stage will be quite enough - where is which note, the duration of notes, what is size and rhythm).

Next to each note, the number indicates which finger of the left hand to play it with (1 - index; 2 - middle; 3 - ring; 4 - little finger).

Tabs

The six lines are the strings of the guitar: the top is the first string (the thinnest); bottom - sixth. Numbers are frets; zero means an open string, that is, it is not pressed against the fingerboard. For example, the number 2 on the third line means that the third string must be pressed on the second fret. All numbers (frets) written in the tabs correspond to the notes located on the staff (visually they are parallel to them).

How to play?

First, you need to download sheet music/tabs of the C major scale for guitar -< >. The archive contains a recording in the form of an image, as well as a gtp file for the Guitar Pro program; It's up to you to decide which option is better.

Open the scale so that it is visible in front of your eyes as you master it on the guitar.

Sound production

The notes are played with an alternating stroke - that is, one by one: the first note is a downward stroke (the designation is a “bracket” under the note), the second note is an upward stroke (“tick”). Watch your right hand: in this case, stroke repetitions are not allowed (2 times up or 2 times down).

Parsing tablature

The first note of the scale is the C note: as indicated in the tabs, press it with your ring finger on the third fret of the fifth string. The blow of the pick is down.

The second note is D: this is the open fourth string. In the tabs there is a zero on the fourth line. This means there is no need to press the string; Raise the fingers of your left hand only slightly so that they do not interfere with sound production, but do not remove them completely from the fretboard. Make a sound by hitting the pick upward (alternating stroke is required!)

In the same way, analyze/disassemble the location of each note, and, accordingly, then remove it. Having reached the highest note of a given major scale (up to the first octave), move in the opposite, downward direction (as it is written in notes - to the lowest, first note).

Follow the actions of your right hand (stroke!) and left hand (fingering!). It is very important to play notes with the fingers indicated next to each note. Don't try to play fast. Your task now is to remember the location of the sounds on the fretboard, their sequence, and which finger to press which note.

Playing in tempo

After analyzing the notes/tabs, you can begin to rhythmically play the scale - at a given tempo, maintaining the appropriate duration of each sound.

You will need a metronome; Any will do - mechanical, electronic, online (posted on a web page) or in the form of a computer program.

Set the metronome to 30-40 beats per minute (BPM), and then turn it on. Play scale sounds in sync with the beats; Each beat of the metronome is a note (strike on a string). Achieve an even sound - without rushing or delaying.

If you don’t have time, you get confused, the notes don’t sound clearly (muffled or with overtones), reduce the tempo.

Well, if you play C major on the guitar - cleanly, evenly, without errors, you can increase the tempo (but not much!) For example, try playing in sync with the audio example (see above) - 50 BPM. You can download it -< >.

Practice playing scales for 15-30 minutes a day. Give your fingers a rest: avoid pain and fatigue in your hands. Play each sound consciously, that is, analyze what note you are playing (Do, Re, Mi...), memorize it visually on the fingerboard and by ear.

Practice

Achieve confident execution of scales at a tempo of 50 BMP. With this minimum of performing technique, you can move on to the next step - playing simple melodies in C major.

Key

The center of tonality is the tonic - the basis of the scale and the first degree of the mode. When it comes to tonal designation, it acts as its main representative (for example, if the first degree is “C”, this will mean the tonality of C major or C minor).

Tones can be divided into 3 separate groups:

2 simple keys that can be easily demonstrated on a piano keyboard. They are found exclusively on the white keys.
14 sharp keys, divided into two poles - major (7) and minor (7).
14 flat keys, also divided into 2 groups - major (7) and minor (7).

Circle of fifths

The circle of fifths is the main assistant in determining the signs of all keys. It is worth noting that the tonalities on a guitar are no different from any others on other instruments. The structure and sound are similar, only the sound production technique is different and the timbre inherent in the instrument is characteristic only for it.

Understanding the need (sharps and flats) is the most important point that can greatly simplify the task of learning tonalities on the guitar and chords in songs.

So, below is the circle of fifths of all keys in music.

As you can see, with each subsequent step one sign is added. And this is not without reason. The appearance of these signs is associated with the clear construction of a major or minor scale:

For major: tone - tone - semitone - tone - tone - semitone.
For - semitone - tone - tone - semitone - tone - tone.

Following these patterns, the signs either increase the levels or decrease them. This information is covered in particular detail in the “scales” section of the solfeggio course.

Key and chords on guitar

After a complete theoretical familiarization with scales using the piano keyboard, you are allowed to switch to the desired instrument. Here, most often, the first chord sounded on the guitar sets the tone of the piece.

Please note that a chord is the simultaneous sound of 3 or more sounds.

If you look at it from the side of harmony, it will be a tonic triad. A tonic triad is 3 stable degrees of tonality, played simultaneously (in C major these are the notes “do-mi-sol”).

The chord indicated in the tablature by the inscription Am is the most popular among chords in instrumentalist circles:

a - “la”;
m - “minor”.

The sound of this chord at the very beginning means that we have the key of A minor on the guitar.

Studying scales should begin with simple keys - the a-minor described above or its parallel - c-dur (C major). By freely navigating through them, the student will be able to easily find sharps and flats that are part of the structure of other keys.

An interesting and useful fact: the scales included in the major scales have a parallel in the minor with similar accidental signs, therefore you need to memorize not 24 keys, but half as many - 12.

Before you play

You can play a scale of a certain key on a guitar either on one string or on different ones.

Before you take up the instrument, you need to thoroughly study its neck. The frets are numbered from the head of the guitar. The dots on the side make it easier to navigate the system.

For guidance in all sounds, you need to know the notes on the open strings from which everything comes: E (the thinnest string), B, G, D, A, E (the thickest string).

For both the first and second methods, it is necessary, first of all, to learn all the notes on the guitar neck. It is worth remembering a simple rule: the distance between two adjacent frets is equal to a semitone.

You need to have a fluent understanding of the notes of the scale. They consist of VII steps, and the eighth, forming an octave, repeats the first.

It is very important to understand the difference between a tone and a semitone and their clear sequence in the scale. Remember that the top is the tones and the bottom is the half tones.

Let's start playing

First you need to decide - what scale to play? After the final choice, you need to find the note from which the process will begin. If the choice fell on the C major scale, this means that on the fingerboard your fingers will pinch the string on the note C. This can be done on any fret that attracts you.

Remember the scheme of the major scale (tone - tone - semitone - tone - tone - semitone). Based on this structure, begin your movement. Remember the principle by which tones and halftones are arranged. Tone - 1 fret + 1 fret, semitone - 1 fret (next from the current pressed fret). If the note C is pressed, then the D will not be on the next fret, but after one, since the distance between these two steps is equal to a whole tone.

Learn and memorize fingering - the pattern of finger movement. After mastering the scale on one string, you can move on to a more complex option - guitar boxes.

Scales should be learned in both ascending and descending movements.

Bottom line

Once you have a complete and fluent understanding of the keys on the guitar, moving on to chords will be a fairly easy process for you. It will be enough to determine the three main stable steps of the scale you need and press them simultaneously.

Of course, there are many chord diagrams for beginners and amateurs who do not dive deeply into music theory. But if you want to master the instrument at a more professional level, the tips described above will help you with this.

Gamma- this is a sequence of sounds within an octave, coming from the fundamental tone at certain intervals. Now for an explanation.

Octave- this is part of the sound series, consisting of 7 main and 5 altered notes.

Base tone- this is the main note of the scale, from which the scale is built and with which it ends.

Intervals- this means intervals of a tone or semitone. On a guitar fretboard, the 1st fret is a semitone.

Raising a note by half a tone is a shift of 1 fret towards the body of the guitar.

Lowering a note by half a tone is a shift of 1 fret towards the headstock.

What are scales for? Scales were invented to develop the technique of playing a musical instrument. No matter what instrument you learn to play, you will have to play scales - without this, learning will be less effective. The scales have the following features:

Develop stretching of the fingers of the left hand
Develop a sense of the fingerboard in the left hand
Develop independence of finger actions in the right hand
Develop hearing
Develop a sense of rhythm

Features of the game scales

Any scale must be played not just like that, but following a number of rules:

in the right hand it is necessary to play by alternating fingers: index-middle, best by playing with a support, when the finger hits the string and rests on the next higher string;
you need to play loudly and clearly;
You should strive to make equal spaces between adjacent sounds;
the fingers of the left hand should press the string as close to the frets as possible, as this develops stretching;
the finger of the right hand must produce a sound simultaneously with the fret of the finger of the left hand, and in no case after a pause after the finger has been fretted;
you need to try to give the game of scales a dynamic coloring, as if it were a simple piece of music;

How to play a scale

The scale can be played in different ways. You can play it slowly, thinking through every action of your left and right hands, or you can play it at speed. You can play the scale in triplets. As you have already read, you need to alternate strikes with the index and middle finger of your right hand all the time. Every third blow can be isolated, that is, it will be like this: THERE-there-there-THAM-there-there... This very well develops the independence of the actions of the fingers of the right hand, because every third blow falls on different fingers. But at the same time, it is important to monitor the speed of the game - it should not change.

What are the types of scales and how to build them

Each range has its own name. It is called by the name of the note from which it is built. For example, there is a scale in G major or, for example, in C minor. If a scale begins with the note SALT, then it must end with the note SALT and nothing else.

Major scales are built according to the following principle: take the initial note, let it be the note SA, and then from it, according to the law of constructing a major scale, a scale is built. The law of construction is a certain sequence of intervals between the notes of the scale.

Minor scales are built on the same principle as major scales, only the law of construction for them will look different.

Scale E minor– one of the most popular scales on the guitar. Songs written based on this scale give off a homely warmth and evoke a feeling of comfort and coziness. This is what the E minor scale looks like on the fretboard:

Sounds included in the E minor scale

Guitar Neck Diagram

Names of notes included in the E minor scale

The sounds included in the E minor scale obey the following sequence: Mi(E) – Fa#(F#) – Sol(G) – A(A) – Si(H) – Do(C) – Re(D)

Practical instructions for quickly memorizing and subdividing scales!

To play E minor scale throughout the entire neck of the guitar, it is recommended to divide the scale into separate pieces. Each of these pieces must include three notes, and these notes must be on the same string. This is the shortest way to memorize scales. Three-note fingering is ideal for developing your playing speed and practicing your technique.

Just below you will find E minor scale for guitar, presented in the form of seven small bar diagrams. Each of these diagrams shows you the fingering patterns for each of the three-note positions.

E minor scale, divided into positions. In each of these positions three notes are played on each string

Position No. 1

Position No. 2

Position No. 3

Position No. 4

Position No. 5

Position No. 6

Position No. 7

Major key parallel to E minor

Please note that G major – major parallel to the E minor scale. This means that the sounds that make up the E minor scale are identical to the sounds that make up the G major scale.

Your speed of playing the electric guitar has reached eighty beats per minute. No? Go back to the previous lesson. If so, then go ahead!

What are scales? To simplify very much, a scale can be called a series of sounds located in a strictly defined sequence of semitones, tones, and sometimes large intervals. Scales in the context of fingering thinking are discussed in great detail. In this lesson we will use them as another type of exercise. What are the benefits of scales? Firstly, they contain both external and internal strokes. Secondly, scale boxes cover all six strings. Third, they are usually looped, which makes it possible to play one scale for a long time.

There are a huge number of scales. But we won’t need all of them, since this lesson is aimed at developing speed, not musical thinking. I will give only a few of those that you can use in your songs, leaving behind melodic modes, harmonic minor, major pentatonic scale, blues scale and many others.

But first of all, I would like to talk a little about how to play them and what the fingerings that you see below are. I received a lot of questions on this topic and realized that most beginners have a very poor understanding of what scales are in principle. So, horizontal rulers are strings, as you understand, vertical ones are frets. The circles represent the notes that should be played. Under no circumstances should you mistake the scale for a chord and try to play all the notes at the same time. Start playing from the bottom left corner from left to right (i.e. from the thickest string, from the place where the frets are wider). Then work your way up to the higher strings, ending up playing the scale in the upper right corner. Then you can return to the original note in exactly the opposite sequence. If everything is still not clear, at the end of the lesson you can download Guitar Pro tablature of all scales that you will find here. But remember that these fingerings can be easily moved along the fingerboard and the scale will not change, only its tonality will change. Also, do not forget that all scales must be played with an VARIABLE STROKE. Down-up-down-up! And don’t forget about the other rules discussed in previous lessons!

MINOR PENTATONIC

You are already familiar with the minor pentatonic scale from the previous lesson. Here I will show five boxes of this range in different positions. if you look closely, you will notice that they can be put together like pieces of a mosaic. Ultimately, this is what you should see when looking at the neck of a guitar - the notes included in a specific scale, its tonic on various strings and frets, the versatility of how you can play any passage that can come to your mind. You'll have to work on these boxes... all your life. No more no less. Well, or at least as long as you're going to play guitar.

Never limit yourself to playing in one position. Have you ever seen Zakk Wylde play an entire solo without moving his hand along the fretboard? Me neither:)

DIATONIC MODES

Further more! Below are five boxes of diatonic seven-step scales. First - Mixolydian major, often used by John Petrucci in his progressive themes. Next comes minor scale (Aeolian minor). Among rock and metal solos, she rightfully takes second place. Feel its gloomy, medieval atmosphere.

In the third picture - Locrian mode. If you play it from the second stage, it will turn out Ionian (natural major) major. Do you want to write something uplifting and fun? Perhaps epic or pathetic? Then use it. Try to play according to the rule of one finger - one fret (in the case of natural major boxing this is not difficult). On the fourth box you see Dorian minor- another favorite of old-school rock guitarists. And finally, the fifth box shows Phrygian minor, differing from the usual one by only one step - the second lowered, but what an atmosphere it gives to it! Having played it from this very second stage, we get Lydianmajor. You could hear this scale in the works of Joe Satriani.

Once again I will list the scales and the method of obtaining them based on the natural major scale. So!

1. The Ionian major is built on the first degree of the natural and, accordingly, is identical to it.

2. The Dorian minor is built on the second degree of the natural major.

3. Phrygian minor - at the third degree of natural.

4. Lydian major - on the fourth.

5. Mixolydian major - on the fifth.

6. Aeolian (natural minor) - on the sixth

7. The Locrian mode is built on the seventh degree of natural major.

Here it is, a fingering grid on which you can see all the scales at the same time. The black dot represents the tonic of the Ionian major. Take a closer look and visually find the boxes above.

In the above figure, the four degrees of the Ionian major are labeled - seventh, first, third and fourth. The rest, as you understand, are not at all difficult to find. But this is a topic for a completely different section.

Before this, you played all the exercises in sixteenth notes. Four notes for each metronome beat. But you need to learn to play triplets as well. To do this, we will use scales arranged according to the principle of three notes on a string. The first box is the Phrygian minor box, the next is the Lydian major box, then the Mixolydian box, etc. To calculate speed use the following formula. The speed you were going to play at divide by three and multiply by four. You'll get the speed for eighth note triplets. Let's say you were going to play at a speed of 60 UVM. 60:3*4=80 UVM - the required speed for playing triplets. Play three notes for each metronome beat.

As you can see, the first box hits the open strings. Just slide it to the right. I have already said that the scale does not change, only the tonic changes. These last scales “three notes per string” are not in the tabs, I’m sure you understand the principle. And if not, take another look at the existing scales, compare the tabs and drawing, analyze. Development is impossible without this. Not a single manual and not a single teacher will teach you how to play if you don’t learn yourself.

Here, perhaps, it’s time to stop. Turn on the metronome, learn one of the variations of a scale and start practicing. I'm waiting for you in the next lesson after you can play ALL scales at a speed of 100 UVM. Good luck!