Other video lessons to watch that coincide and dovetail with this lesson:

In the “MUSIC THEORY” section of the website watch:

Chord construction theory and major scale building – Guitar Lesson 9:20 minutes

CHORDS in each KEY – SONG WRITING LESSON FOR MAJOR KEY – part 1 of 3 – 13:41 minutes
CHORDS in each KEY – SONG WRITING LESSON FOR MAJOR KEY – part 2 of 3 – 13:13 minutes
CHORDS in each KEY – SONG WRITING LESSON FOR MAJOR KEY – part 3 of 3 – 13:39 minutes

These written lessons have the six major scales diagrammed out across the neck. You will want to learn all six shapes cold. These major scales are critical for the guitarist wanting to move to the next level.

Click on the orange links below to open the PDF files:

TO COINCIDE WITH THESE WRITTEN LESSONS WATCH THESE TWO VIDEO LESSONS IN THE INTERMEDIATE SECTION:

• Learn theses MAJOR SCALES over the entire neck and you know the modes Part 1 – 11:46 minutes
• MAJOR SCALES Guitar Lesson – connection links – see the neck as one big scale – Part 2 -9:21 minutes

For the most part all music theory compares back to the major scale. The major scale is the elemental constant that all other scales are compared. You are probably familiar with the sound of a major scale – doe, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, doe. There are many different fingerings and ways to play major scales all over the guitar neck. In these lessons you will learn a system of six major scales that I have found students gravitate to the fastest. With all six memorized, you can utilize the entire guitar neck. The scales overlap with each other and you need to note this as that is how we will get you started linking them together – through these overlaps, or link points. So I have also included some scale links so you can play across the neck three octaves.

The major scale is constructed from seven notes, built from the scale degrees of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7. Memorize the scales one at a time and take your time and play the scales slow and in time. It is essential that you know these major scales cold and are comfortable moving them around in all keys. In the last written lesson you will learn to link them together so you can start to view the neck as one big scale because you will see the overlap and how they fit together – then just move that WHOLE chunk up or back to change key. If you know your major scales you will then know all the modes of the major scale – as they are just variations of the major scale – so its absolutely critical to get these scales down cold!

• DOWNLOAD: Minor Pentatonic BLUES scale with expanded scales – page 1 with diagrams

• DOWNLOAD: Minor Pentatonic BLUES scale with expanded scales – page 2 with diagrams

• DOWNLOAD: Minor Pentatonic BLUES scale with expanded scales – page 3 with diagrams

In these written lessons you will learn the Minor Pentatonic Blues scale in all positions. Included is the expanded positions which combine boxes to get you playing laterally across the neck and out of that boxy style of play that many get trapt into. These lesson shows how to add the b5, or blue note to the minor pentatonic scale making it the Blues Scale.

FINGER EXERCISES

Finger exercises are a very important element of a guitar players practice regimen. They can be utilized as warm up or cool down exercises when practicing or before live gigs. It is very important to get the blood flowing through the fingers when beginning practice or before a gig. Just like a sprinter warms up before a track event, a guitarist warms up before playing. When finger exercises are done properly, and consistently integrated into your practice regimen, they build strength, dexterity, picking accuracy, finger mobility and speed, tie both your hands together, get both hands working with machine like precision, and help clean up your playing. They also put a brain into each finger and get them working with precision. Some complain that these are boring, but the bottom line is that they work, and your playing with greatly benefit from them. So do them daily, cleanly, and with good technique.

The exercises listed below will increase in difficulty as you go down the list. Remember, Rome was not built in a day, so it will take some time to master each one. The most important element is at first to play each exercise slow, in time, clean, with no overtones, dinks, sloppiness, or missed notes. Play them slow at first to get your brain used to each individual finger pattern. Then slowly bring up the speed. When you are ready you can play to the click of a metronome to ensure that you are playing in time. Set the metronome at a comfortable speed. Then slowly bump up the speed of the metronome. I cannot emphasize enough, and you are probably getting sick of me stating this, but playing slow, clean, and in time is way better than fast and sloppy.

Be sure to watch the video lesson that coincides with this written lesson – the video lesson is in the intermediate section and titled, “Finger Exercises-improve your picking, finger strength, dexterity, speed, and clarity -13:28 minutes “

By working these exercises ten minutes daily you will find your picking accuracy, speed, finger strength and overall finger dexterity will increase dramatically. They can also be done while watching television, or waiting for something to download on your computer. Whenever you have a spare five minutes pick up the guitar and try and blast a few down the neck a couple of times each.

The finger pattern is the order of your fingers that you will be using during the entire exercise. As always with guitar – your index or pointer finger is 1, your middle finger is 2, your ring finger is 3, and your pinky finger is 4. Keep your fingers in that same exact pattern as you snake up and down the strings vertically for the entire fretboard – don’t change the pattern. Watch the video that goes along with this written lesson if you are not sure. Start each exercise on the low E string and play four notes per string with the given finger pattern. Then after the first four notes drop down to the next string – but always use the same pattern that you are currently working on. When you get to the last string then go to the next fret but stay in the pattern. Keep your fingers as close to the fretboard as possible. Do not let your fret hand come way off the fretboard and out of position – watch your pinky finger as many guitarists have trouble keeping that little guy close to the fretboard.

Utilize strict alternate picking – up, down, up, down, etc. For now, alternate picking with take you the furthest the fastest – so use it exclusively with these exercises. Remember to keep your thumb anchored on the back of the neck and not have it slide up and out of position. Continue with the finger pattern snaking up and down the fretboard vertically utilizing all six strings all the way until your first finger hits the 12^th fret on the low E string and then go back and immediately repeat the exercise 2-4 times each, if possible. When you get to the end of a given exercise it is important to repeat it, because it will build strength. Don’t stop after one run down the fretboard. To build strength the exercise must be played over and over again, multiple times. You will feel the burn the more you implement these exercises. If you feel big pain, stop, shake your hand out, give it a rest, and confirm that you are utilizing the proper technique. Then start again after a little rest period. The twelve sets of patterns below are listed in pairs. Practice each set every day for 2 weeks before moving on to the next set. Try to master one set before moving on the next set. Keep at it every day and watch as your playing soars to the next level!

FINGER PATTERNS

Set 1 – 1,2,3,4 and 4,3,2,1

Set 2 – 2,3,4,1 and 3,2,1,4

Set 3 – 1,4,3,2 and 4,1,2,3

Set 4 – 2,1,4,3 and 3,4,1,2

Set 5 – 1,2,4,3 and 4,3,1,2

Set 6 – 2,1,3,4 and 3,4,2,1

Set 7 – 1,3,4,2 and 4,2,1,3

Set 8 – 2,3,1,4 and 3,2,4,1

Set 9 – 1,4,2,3 and 4,1,3,2

Set 10 – 2,4,1,3 and 3,1,2,4

Set 11 – 1,3,2,4 and 4,2,3,1

Set 12 – 2,4,1,3 and 3,1,4,2

We are first going to look at some very basic minor key examples, and be very structured about writing out the progression and the “rules” of application. There is a reason why certain notes and certain scales sound great over certain progressions and certain chord changes. Over time your ear will develop to the point where you wont have to write out the structure as we will do below – your ear will eventually guide you to all the right notes and you will be doing it on the fly. But that takes time and practice, so you have to work on it – what do I always say and will keep stating as I feel it is one of the most important things to do as a guitarist – DEVELOP YOUR EAR, this is one of the reasons why.

Before we move to other scales lets keep it basic and just look at when to utilize Minor Pentatonic, relative major scales, Aeolian mode, and the Dorian mode when soloing in a minor key. Remember that Aeolian mode is the same thing as Natural minor which is also the same as Pure minor – all three are the same thing. There are other scales and modes you can utilize, but for now lets just look at these.

Remember when you are soloing or improvising, you have two choices:

1. Play the same scales or mode over all the chords – that is called “what relates to all” – no matter what chord you are playing over you use the same thing over each chord – you are playing what works over ALL the changes.

OR YOU CAN

2. Treat each chord change like a separate event and solo with a different scale, mode, or arpeggio over each chord. So you are changing your scale, mode, and arpeggio with each chord change. This gives you a more sophisticated sound and is much harder to apply, takes a little work getting used to. We will work on this technique extensively in coming lesson modules.

So for this lesson we will work on the first choice – using the same scale, mode, or arpeggios over all the changes – playing what relates to all. Do this first to get good at analyzing the chords and playing a mode or modes over all the changes. Then we will move onto treating each chord like a separate event in coming modules.

Here is the big rule for when soloing over all the chords in a minor key progression or song:

When playing over all the chords in a minor key progression, as one option, you can pretty much always use the AEOLIAN mode, UNLESS the IV chord is major or the II chord is minor, then use the DORIAN mode.

That rule is absolutely critical and I strongly suggest that you burn that rule into your brain – you will be utilizing it all the time because so many jams, songs, and progressions are in minor key.

You want to add more weapons to your guitar arsenal in addition to minor pentatonic, so this rule is super important. When soloing in minor key, minor pentatonic and blues should be your default setting. In a minor key progression, (where the I chord is minor), you can always utilize Minor Pentatonic and Blues in that key. That are pretty much a given. If you have a song in G minor you can solo with G minor pent and blues. If you have a song in Am you can solo with A minor pent and blues, etc, etc. And in fact, depending on the chords, you may even be able to use three different minor pentatonic keys as discussed in a previous lesson. You can also add the 9^th, and the other passing tones as per our previous lessons on spicing up the minor pentatonic and blues scales. As long as you don’t hang on the passing tones and you bookend them with strong scalar notes.

If there is not a change to the II or IV chords, then Aeolian mode, or natural minor, is implied and you can utilize the Aeolian mode as well as the default setting of using minor pentatonic and blues scales. So remember if you are soloing over all the chords in a minor key, and there is a major IV or minor II chord somewhere in that progression, whether that chord comes up 2^nd, 4^th, or 10^th in the chord string – you don’t want to play Aeolian mode over that chord because you will hit a very out of key note – the b6. The reverse applies also, if you are soloing over all the chords and you have a IV minor chord come up 2^nd or 5^th or 10^th – and you are mistakenly using the Dorian mode, – then you will hit a very out of key note over that chord – the major 6^th.

EXAMPLE PROGRESSION 1: Dm to Gm – I minor to a IV minor change – (we are in the key of Dm)

1. use D minor pentatonic and blues scales (w/9^th and added passing tones) – that’s the default setting – since we are in the key of D minor we know that Dm pentatonic and blues will always work over all the chords.

2. use D Aeolian mode over both chords as it relates to all – after analyzing the progression we see it is a I minor changing to a IV minor. There is no IV major or II minor in this minor key progression so we can play D Aeolian mode over all the chords. D Aeolian is the same as F major – but you have to emphasize the D notes to sound minor. So play all the F major scales but remember to shift to the root of the mode, D, so emphasize the D notes and make that the tonal center.

3. land on the hip chord tones when the changes come up – draw out the notes in each chord if you don’t know them. Examine the notes in each chord of the progression to determine the hip landing notes when changing chords.

-D minor chord contains the chord tones D (root), F (b3rd), and A (5^th)

-G minor chord contains the chord tones G (root), Bb (b3rd), and D (5^th)

When changing to the Gm try landing on the G, Bb, or D notes to make a big solo statement. The next time around the progression at the change try landing on a different note – maybe first time try landing on the Bb note and then second time around try landing on the D note when the change goes to the Gm chord – listen to how strong those chord tones are and time to hit the note right when the chord changes. Then try landing on one of the Dm chord tones when changing to that chord. Landing on the root, b3rd, or 5^th really kills! Try it and really listen to the chord changes underneath so you can time you change exactly and make a bold solo statement

EXAMPLE PROGRESSION 2: Dm to G major – I minor to a IV major change. (we are in the key of Dm)

1.use D minor pentatonic and blues scales (w/9^th and added passing tones) – that’s the default setting – since we are in the key of D minor we know that Dm pentatonic and blues will always work over all the chords.

2.use D Dorian mode over both chords as it relates to all – after analyzing the progression we see it is a I minor changing to a IV major chord. There is a IV major chord in this minor progression so we can play D Dorian mode over all the chords. D Dorian is the same as C major – but you have to emphasize D notes to sound minor. So play all the C major scales but remember to shift to the root of the mode, D, so emphasize the D notes and make that the tonal center.

3. land on the hip chord tones when the changes come up.

-D minor chord contains the chord tones D-F-A

-G major chord contains the chord tones G-B-D

When changing to the G try landing on the G, B, or D notes to make a big solo statement – follow the guide above.

EXAMPLE PROGRESSION 3: Am7 to Bm7 – I minor to a II minor change. (we are in the key of Am)

– follow same rules as example progression 2 above because we have a I minor chord going to a II minor chord so we know to use the Dorian mode over all changes – it relates to all.

1. use A minor pentatonic and blues scales (w/9^th and added passing tones)

2. use A Dorian mode over both chords. A Dorian is the same as G major. So solo with all your G major scales but emphasize the root of the mode, A. Center that tonic around the A root

3. land on the hip chord tones when the changes come up.

-A minor 7^th chord contains the chord tones A-E-G-C

-B minor 7^th chord contains the chord tones B-F#-A-D