i'll lead off with the obvious: natural major and natural minor. but beyond that, what 2 or 3 do you know like the back of your hand and find most useful?
That's easy! Melodic minor and harmonic minor. Then I use the chromatic as a gimmick, but sometimes people don't get it. I have one review on Broadjam where the reviewer says that he likes the song, but my guitar is totally off on intonation. Oh well. :?
i'll lead off with the obvious: natural major and natural minor. but beyond that, what 2 or 3 do you know like the back of your hand and find most useful?
I generally use the Major and minor pentatonics and well as the full Major and minor scales. I also mix in the modes as well. I used to use the diminished scale a lot when I played some jazz flavored stuff. But I forget it since I have not used it in 20 years.
Good comments by all who have responded to this post.
I would also like to add that when you are practicing scales smegolas to think how the scales relate to each other.
You can usually play the same scale in 5 different patterns up the neck before repeating at the octave. Then think about playing those five patterns in the same area of the guitar that you normally just play one pattern in.
If you can think in those terms you can play in 5 different keys without moving your fingers vertically up the neck much. By thinking of the fretboard in a horizontal fashion you can theoretically cover 2 and one half octaves without moving from your position. Just think...... 5 different keys, 2 and one half octaves, without much vertical movement of the fingers.
Most people I know develop much more speed playing horizontally on the fretboard than vertically like a sitar.
You might also try to play a little game that I still do. Move your left index finger up and down the neck, without looking. Then stop your finger randomly on the neck and on a random string. Look down and identify the note your finger rests on.
Minor Pentatonic/Blues, Dorian, Mixolydian. Sometimes Phrygian. I love the sound of Lydian(think Satch's Flying in a Blue Dream), but I don't use it much. I've been messing around with chromatics a lot lately, also.
What are scales? Who needs tinny solos when you can have full on metal rhythm \\m/
Only scale i know is the pentatonic (i think) because thats what all sabbath and metallica's solos were from and after playing them every day you soon become familiar with the notes :twisted:
Record that onto your GNX (3 and 4), loop it, and play that B-Major scale (starting on E) just like MartinTele said. Really a \"dreamy\" sounding mode.
Tod
BTW there are a couple of cool Satriani lessons on Scales \"HERE\"
Personely I am into Locrian,Dimished, bothe maj and minor Pentonics with chromatic passing tones, harmonic minor in phrygian position(dominate 4th position) Straight chromatics for warmups with running aeolian scales top to bottom. But I also love lydian and major scales and country blue grass picking. I guess if you play a scale any scale I love it especially on the all mighty 6-string.
I Play at Church in a worship band so as you can imagine it is very important to use the Major Scale. Next I use Major and Minor Penatonic. I'm starting to learn modes and get tight with those patterns & there uses per my applications. All in all my goal is to learn & Master all Scales and be able to play any style with anyone and be able to do things that fit sound great and ad to the total goal and sound being produced.
Modes aren't patterns. They're notes played relative to scales or other backings. If you play a pattern and the chord accompanyment changes, then you're in a different mode. This is going to open up a huge can of worms.
Modes aren't patterns. They're notes played relative to scales or other backings. If you play a pattern and the chord accompanyment changes, then you're in a different mode. This is going to open up a huge can of worms.
to me, modes are different scales. you start at point A and end at point B, but you take a different route to get there with each mode. i suppose i should have asked what modes do you like, thats what i was getting at. for me, i find if you know ionian (natural major i believe), aeolian (natural minor i believe), and mixolydian (a major mode), then you can jam over most things. but i am looking to get to know 1 or 2 others a little better. looks like lydian is popular - is that a major scale?
This is a subject that always starts lots of arguments, so I knew it was going to come eventually.
Modes are more about tonalities than patterns. If you play a particular pattern and play different chords underneath, your mode would change even though you are still playing the same pattern.
When you play music, you aren't playing scales. You skip around notes from the scale. The degree of the note that you select versus the note in the backing determines what type of sound you get (mode).
Here's a site with some examples. http://lorilinstruth.com/lessons/modes.php
Modes aren't patterns. They're notes played relative to scales or other backings. If you play a pattern and the chord accompanyment changes, then you're in a different mode. This is going to open up a huge can of worms.
Well said AC!! But right now for me truly as a new player to build speed and engrane in my head how each one sounds I literally am memorizing patterns and moving them to other keys etc.. just so they are so natural I don't even have to think about them. You know alternate pick, play tripplets etc.. How they all fit with the Chords & music I know you need to know what notes fit to play over. My Bad!!
Great Post AC and a good link.
Right on about relating scales to chord structures for different tonalities. I've found a pretty good warm up exercise to get the mind working on those interelationships and to get the mind working laterally across the fret board.
Try this. Two chord vamp. A minor 7th to B flat minor 7th. Record and loop the vamp at any tempo you desire. Now keep up with that half step change by changing scale and trying different tonalities above the changes. A good example is playing C major on top of an A minor scale. Note that A aeolian is the same notes as C major.
After that you might want to try a whole step vamp B to A and try that. Then try the 1, 4, 5 (A, D, E, standard 3 chord progression) but instead of playing A major, aeolian, etc.... start off playing the appropriate D scale while playing the D chord and the same goes for the E chord. While staying in the same position without moving vertically up the neck.
Then progress to the point where you're playing the entire chords of the scale and playing the appropriate scale on top of the 7 notes of the scale until you repeat at the octave.
At least for me, the above really gets my mind going about how all the scales, modes, are interrelatted, and gives me a better understanding of those relationships to the fret board.
I Play at Church in a worship band so as you can imagine it is very important to use the Major Scale.
I hear ya... it's a real challenge to come up with new sounds and keep it fresh when soloing over worship songs.
I played in the band for about 5 years at our first church. Now my wife and I joined another church about a year ago and we just started the band.
Get this... this is so cool.... Our pastor sings, plays keys, and leads prasie and worship. So not only is he strong in the word, he is really in touch with praise and worship!
And..... Our pastor and his brother used to own a club in Chicago! Hahaha
Can you say, \"intelligent lighting\", \"Fog Machines\", \"Computer assisted LCD\", and best of all...
Jesus Rules
Thats cool!!! I have been playing at our Chuch for 2 years this Month. when I started 2 years ago I knew nothing played Chords Alone (Bairly) I was so nervous I could hardly move!! Playing guitar has always been a dream of mine since middle school days. Well in God's time it has come to pass. PTL!!! I love it I feel so alive fullfilled like I'm finally were I belong and doing what God has for me!! As my quote: Says bieleve it!!!
Personally, I'm a pentatonic player myself. Any extra notes I play are color. When I'm \"playing\" scales I like the Dorian mode. You can play for example C# Dorian. It's the same notes as E Lydian, but, a lot of you know that. After that, it's just plain major and natural minor pentatonic scales or whatever sounds good to me.
To be honest: I never understood modes. Can you help me?
That link from AC for example...
When you scroll down to the \"Modes for Metalheads\" flash thingy you see a guitar fretboard with the E-minor pattern on it. Ok so far I understood everything.
So if I understood that correctly I get B-Phrygian when I play the E-Minor pattern over a B-Minor Chord? Accordingly I'd get E-Phrygian if I played A-Minor over an E-Minor Chord?
If that's correct, what's the big deal with scales? You just shift your minor pattern and get a different scale...
Personally, I'm a pentatonic player myself. Any extra notes I play are color. When I'm \"playing\" scales I like the Dorian mode. You can play for example C# Dorian. It's the same notes as E Lydian, but, a lot of you know that. After that, it's just plain major and natural minor pentatonic scales or whatever sounds good to me.
Jason
Area5150: congratulations on having the best name on the board! i cant believe i didnt think of that!!!!
I'll try to explain it, at least to the extent that I understand it I'll use the key of C cuz it's easiest.
C D E F G A B
I ii iii IV V vi vii
I, IV, and V are major, the others are minor.
Play C-Major scale over the I (C) is Ionian
\"\" \"\" ii (D min) is Dorian
iii (E min) is Phrygian
IV is Lydian
V is Mixolydian
vi (A min)is Aeolian (natural minor)
vii (B min) is Locrian
So you have 1 scale that can be any one of those modes, depending on what the chord(s) are in the accompaniment.
I don't know if that helps or not. Maybe makes it more confusing :roll:
Even though they're all the same scale, basically, it was helpful for me to learn them all as different patterns. When I learned them that way, it was easier for me to see the relationships to the major scale.
Anyway, that's how I think about the modes. I'm a rock/metal guy, though, the Jazz cats around here can probably give a more thorough explanation
I tend to use a lot of accidentals and don't usually think of scales as individual modes but rather as an array of possible note choices. That said, when composing or improvising I most often resort to sounds of the minor scales (again, I don't really think of harmonic/melodic as distinct from natural), blues and bebop scales (particularly dominant and augmented); phrygian, lydian and lydian #5, locrian and the seventh mode of melodic minor (super locrian or altered or whatever it's called nowadays).
Comments
I generally use the Major and minor pentatonics and well as the full Major and minor scales. I also mix in the modes as well. I used to use the diminished scale a lot when I played some jazz flavored stuff. But I forget it since I have not used it in 20 years.
I would also like to add that when you are practicing scales smegolas to think how the scales relate to each other.
You can usually play the same scale in 5 different patterns up the neck before repeating at the octave. Then think about playing those five patterns in the same area of the guitar that you normally just play one pattern in.
If you can think in those terms you can play in 5 different keys without moving your fingers vertically up the neck much. By thinking of the fretboard in a horizontal fashion you can theoretically cover 2 and one half octaves without moving from your position. Just think...... 5 different keys, 2 and one half octaves, without much vertical movement of the fingers.
Most people I know develop much more speed playing horizontally on the fretboard than vertically like a sitar.
You might also try to play a little game that I still do. Move your left index finger up and down the neck, without looking. Then stop your finger randomly on the neck and on a random string. Look down and identify the note your finger rests on.
I'll shut up now,
Just my 2 cents.
See Ya,
Tal
Tod
Only scale i know is the pentatonic (i think) because thats what all sabbath and metallica's solos were from and after playing them every day you soon become familiar with the notes :twisted:
I spend alot of time with the lydian scale. Want to have hours of fun?????
Hit an open Low E string. Riff in B major. Keep hitting the open E and riff with the B major scale. That's E Lydian.
Related to the lydian. Slide an open E chord up two frets. One of my favorite chords.
MT
0----0----0
0--
11--11--11-slide-(9)--
11--11--11-slide-(9)--
-0-(let ring)
Record that onto your GNX (3 and 4), loop it, and play that B-Major scale (starting on E) just like MartinTele said. Really a \"dreamy\" sounding mode.
Tod
BTW there are a couple of cool Satriani lessons on Scales \"HERE\"
to me, modes are different scales. you start at point A and end at point B, but you take a different route to get there with each mode. i suppose i should have asked what modes do you like, thats what i was getting at. for me, i find if you know ionian (natural major i believe), aeolian (natural minor i believe), and mixolydian (a major mode), then you can jam over most things. but i am looking to get to know 1 or 2 others a little better. looks like lydian is popular - is that a major scale?
Modes are more about tonalities than patterns. If you play a particular pattern and play different chords underneath, your mode would change even though you are still playing the same pattern.
When you play music, you aren't playing scales. You skip around notes from the scale. The degree of the note that you select versus the note in the backing determines what type of sound you get (mode).
Here's a site with some examples.
http://lorilinstruth.com/lessons/modes.php
Well said AC!! But right now for me truly as a new player to build speed and engrane in my head how each one sounds I literally am memorizing patterns and moving them to other keys etc.. just so they are so natural I don't even have to think about them. You know alternate pick, play tripplets etc.. How they all fit with the Chords & music I know you need to know what notes fit to play over. My Bad!!
Right on about relating scales to chord structures for different tonalities. I've found a pretty good warm up exercise to get the mind working on those interelationships and to get the mind working laterally across the fret board.
Try this. Two chord vamp. A minor 7th to B flat minor 7th. Record and loop the vamp at any tempo you desire. Now keep up with that half step change by changing scale and trying different tonalities above the changes. A good example is playing C major on top of an A minor scale. Note that A aeolian is the same notes as C major.
After that you might want to try a whole step vamp B to A and try that. Then try the 1, 4, 5 (A, D, E, standard 3 chord progression) but instead of playing A major, aeolian, etc.... start off playing the appropriate D scale while playing the D chord and the same goes for the E chord. While staying in the same position without moving vertically up the neck.
Then progress to the point where you're playing the entire chords of the scale and playing the appropriate scale on top of the 7 notes of the scale until you repeat at the octave.
At least for me, the above really gets my mind going about how all the scales, modes, are interrelatted, and gives me a better understanding of those relationships to the fret board.
See You guys,
Tal
Tal, good exercise. I never really thought about doing an exercise for modes. Cool.
Thats cool!!! I have been playing at our Chuch for 2 years this Month. when I started 2 years ago I knew nothing played Chords Alone (Bairly) I was so nervous I could hardly move!! Playing guitar has always been a dream of mine since middle school days. Well in God's time it has come to pass. PTL!!! I love it I feel so alive fullfilled like I'm finally were I belong and doing what God has for me!! As my quote: Says bieleve it!!!
Jason
To be honest: I never understood modes. Can you help me?
That link from AC for example...
When you scroll down to the \"Modes for Metalheads\" flash thingy you see a guitar fretboard with the E-minor pattern on it. Ok so far I understood everything.
So if I understood that correctly I get B-Phrygian when I play the E-Minor pattern over a B-Minor Chord? Accordingly I'd get E-Phrygian if I played A-Minor over an E-Minor Chord?
If that's correct, what's the big deal with scales? You just shift your minor pattern and get a different scale...
Wondering,
Gwar
Area5150: congratulations on having the best name on the board! i cant believe i didnt think of that!!!!
C D E F G A B
I ii iii IV V vi vii
I, IV, and V are major, the others are minor.
Play C-Major scale over the I (C) is Ionian
\"\" \"\" ii (D min) is Dorian
iii (E min) is Phrygian
IV is Lydian
V is Mixolydian
vi (A min)is Aeolian (natural minor)
vii (B min) is Locrian
So you have 1 scale that can be any one of those modes, depending on what the chord(s) are in the accompaniment.
I don't know if that helps or not. Maybe makes it more confusing :roll:
Even though they're all the same scale, basically, it was helpful for me to learn them all as different patterns. When I learned them that way, it was easier for me to see the relationships to the major scale.
Anyway, that's how I think about the modes. I'm a rock/metal guy, though, the Jazz cats around here can probably give a more thorough explanation
Hope that helps,
Tod
- Ilia
I think that answered my question...
gwar