This is done because blues (and pentatonic scales) do not follow the 'usual' music theory rules that hold for diatonic scales, such as major and all minor varieties, which state that each note from A.G can only be used once in the scale.įor the blues scale, the half-step / semitone closeness of notes around the 4th and 5th notes usually mean it is inevitable that a note name will be used twice in the scale, so it makes sense to use the chromatic scale names for all notes. Wherever possible, complex note names from the major scale are simplified to arrive at the final blues scale notes.įor example, in the Gb blues scale, the 4th note of the major scale Cb is simplified to be note B. The 7th note is the octave of the tonic note, where the pattern begins to repeat itself. So for this major scale, the 5th note of the major scale is flattened from A to Ab to make the blue note.īelow are those notes numbered 1 to 6 on the piano keyboard. The flattened 5th is the blue note that gives the blues scale its distinctive sound in this key. To flatten a note, just replace it with the piano key lower in pitch ie. The 2nd and 6th notes of the major scale are not used.

The blues scale is made from the 1st, flattened 3rd, 4th, flattened 5th, 5th and flattened 7th notes from the major scale above. Click on the following links to read more about arpeggios and related materials.This step shows the 6 blues scale notes constructed using the major scale of the same key. The scale degrees found in the Major pentatonic scale are Root - 2nd - 3rd - 3rd - 5th - 6th Diagram below show the A Major Pentatonic Blues Scale.

That covers the CAGED positions for the Gb Major pentatonic scale. Gb Major Pentatonic Scale in the 1st Position (lowest fret is 1) Gb Major Pentatonic Scale in the 3rd Position (lowest fret is 3) Gb Major Pentatonic Scale in the 6th Position (lowest fret is 6) Gb Major Pentatonic Scale in the 8th Position (lowest fret is 8) Gb Major Pentatonic Scale in the 11th Position (lowest fret is 11) Let’s look at the 5 CAGED positions for Gb Major pentatonic.

As none of the notes in Gb Major pentatonic can be played on the open strings, there is no ‘open position’ for this particular scale. The best way to practise any guitar scale is to memorize the individual positions along the fretboard. Gb Major Pentatonic Scale CAGED Positions Here are pictures and notes of the Minor Pentatonic Blues scales. Therefore, the Gb Major pentatonic scale contains the same notes as the E flat minor pentatonic scale.įor an in depth lesson on the theory behind the major pentatonic scale, read the post on pentatonic scales. The relative minor of Gb Major is Eb minor. The G flat Major pentatonic scale contains the following notes:

G flat major pentatnoic blues scale