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    115 views25 pages

    SCALES & MODES - Essential Skills PDF

    Uploaded by

    Guillermo Guevara

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    of 25
    SCALES @POUES: Md : A cD 6.» More] Movable Scales and Modes Arranged over Rock, Shuffle ) and Funk Gréoves ee Introduction Practicing scales is about the most efficient thing you can do to improve your tech- nique. All music using harmony is based on scales, so when you work on scales and modes you benefit twice: You gain greater dexterity and increase your knowledge of fretboard theory. Sounds great on paper, but there’s just one problem: It’s so boring! Rarely in real music do you find an entire ascending or descending scale in uniform rhythms. Fast passage- work often includes a whole octave of some scale, but melodically scales are dreary entities indeed. No one will argue that real music picks up where scales leave off. Scales are simply a means to improving musicianship—they are not ends to themselves. But steps can be taken to remove the drudgery from scale exercises that has plagued instrumentalists since the dawn of lessons. That's what we've done in Scales And Modes. We've taken the most essential scales for playing rock, pop, jazz, countr ethnic music and set them to background tracks. This serves two purposes: issical, and 1) You can actually see what a typical progression is for any given scale (e.g. which chords are used for the Lydian-Dominant scale) 2) You have a musical cont xt in which to practice your scales and modes. Fach scale is presented in the fingering that is typically most used for that position. The pentatonic and blues scale variations have position shifts written in that allow you to access other inversions of the scale. The exercises are played twice through—once at a slower tempo, and once at the performace-level typical for that groove. Chord names above the music indicate the chords used by the rhythm guitar on the left channel of the backing tracks. Example numbers in the music correspond to CD track numbers. Use these scales as a point of departure for your own compositions and improvisations. ‘Transpose them and find alternate fingerings if you wish. But always keep Scales And Modes on the music stand or in your guitar case. It will serve ‘double duty” as a handy reference guide and indispensable tool in your daily practice regimen. About The Author Jon Chappell’s books have sold more than 60,000 copies worldwide and are available in several different languages. He has played with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra composer Gunther Schuller, and has appeared on Flying Fish and Relativity Records. He has performed and recorded with Graham Nash, Pat Benatar, Roger McGuinn, John Prine, and has played on numerous television and radio commerc He currently lives in New York. Contents The Major Scale The Pentatonic Major Scale The Minor Scale The Pentatonic Minor Scale The Harmonic Minor Scale The Phrygian-Dominant Scale The Dorian Mode ; The Phrygian Mode Ys The Lydian Mode he The Mixolydian Mode Pas if The Locrian Mode eH ‘ The Diminished Scale ie The Half-Whole Diminished Scale The Whole Tone Scale The Blues Scale The Mixo-Blues Scale The Lydian-Dominant Scale * The Super-Locrian Scale The Hindu Scale The Gypsy Scale The Hungarian Scale The Hungarian-Minor Scale TABLATURE EXPLANATION/NOTATION LEGEND ' 4 y “This is easly the most popular scale in all Western music inducing the music of South Arica, Central Africa, and the Caribbean, Our whole system of tonal music based around that urique sequence of intervas that yelds the farilar do-re-mi-f-soVactido, The seven basic modes are derived from i, and all saussions of harmony assume a basic knowledge of the way it works and sounds. The fst exercise ubizes the two most common versions of the sale: the “G' version, with the fourth finger on the root, and the “E* ver ‘Son, with the second finger on the ract. “G' and "E” denote the open-postion chords to which the scale corresponds. TH A Major . A Chm Bm D Bm E A Fim E Bm Fim D Bm E A 8 A cin D Fim E A ] D Major D Em a > Using only the dagrees |. 2,3, 5, and 6 f the major sce, the pentatonic major scale THE PENTRTONIG MAIOR ICALE) ‘e° among gitar for cbunty-favored leads the ven othe Alrran Brothers and Aber Lee. laying tis scale ver the appropriate progreson vitualy guarantees "no wrong notes.” This version alows you to access ave poston by si ingon the stor 6th strings into the adacent postion Gi) A Pentatonic Major in 5 Positions A D A re Athough a dsant second behind the major sale in popula, the rinr scale nevertheless isthe number two scale in Western music. Indeed much of majorsouncing music—which desorbed as happy, postve, triumphant —sbal> ‘anced by the sad-sounding minor scale and its produ. The minor scale i diferent from the major sca in that thas a fatted 3d, fated éth, and fatted 7th, This formula occurs without aration ifyou begin three steps down fram the tonic of any major key. Far example, in C—all white nates on the piano—if you begin on A and play oA an octave Higher using al the notes of C major (the white keys) youll derive the minor scale. Thisis why A minor is known asthe relative minor of C. thas the sare key sgature as C. “The two fingerings here correspond to the postions given for the rajor sale: Inthe second example, ve fingered the second-octave B on the ‘th sting, th fret, as opposed to the 3rd sting, th fret. [5] AMinor am c 6 Bris Dm ° c am [6] A Minor THE PENTATONIC MINGR SCALE | T:cke. ete penttcric major scat, canbe use er datoni based progewers rors derived fom the ey. fr wrongrncte fe! plpng But the pentatonic minor has one ore indepensable ke: k contre the primary notes chaatesic of bes playing, namely the |, 53,4, 5. and. In Athe nates are A C, D, E. and Because thi sce safes noe as wel 2 the Bes shuators, you" heart refered to seer the penstorc minor sce or he oeatnc bues scale, depending on the corte This versen (a paral 0 he majocseale counters) lows you to acces al ve postions by lng on the oF fh sings nt the acacent postion AA Pentatonie Minor in Five Positions Am c Am ¢ Po Am 6 THE HARMONIC MINOR SCALE | 'iyou rite te 7 cose othe natal minor sale by ahasep youl getthe harmonic minor sce. Ths so named beaux the chord res on the fh sale degree (forms a major iad oF the ths addd, a dorsnart7ih cher A major oc demnar: 7h V chord reschng to rina toric a ruch move powerful eltorsip ‘than a V minor toa | minor, so the alteration s refered to as harmonic minor because of the mare saishing harmonic progression t creates, (9) B Harmonie Minor Bm De cams Bm Co Bm De AnT ctm7bs Em Fn Bm De Apr Bm Chm7bs BHT 7 or Wage a (17) E Harmonic Minor DO) ‘The term was popuarze by Joe Saran, mough me scale was around long betore Ne THE PHRYGIAN-DOMINANT SCALE eo oe ost wie hasaccnujuctaneacotctonecnon Dutt so chen concened ws ts own eTiy Dar eT mention here. you conser the nteasof the harmonic minor sale besning on the th degree you get | 23-45 hi 57. Srce thas a major 3rd and a7, tat rakes a dominant ho Butt ako has a which sa Phygan characters: fc The a great scl for solorg over a V7 resohrg toa | incr (BD Fé Phrygian-Dominant Po cer Co s 47 c G Em anT rar eT rH THE DORIAN MODE | Tr: Doran modes ike the natural minor scale but wth a ated ehh degree. This gues the clea szht Iymore major sound than the straight minor tis the second mode ofthe major scale, and f sed most commonly a the wale over alin? chord A Dorian, Play 4 times Am © Bm D c c Am 4 Fine A Dorian oa) Play 4 times Am G Dd Bm c oo WS: Am Play 4 times 1G] D Dorian Ploy tines Dm c 6 En Foc Fr ¢ bm 10 THE PHRYGIAN MODE | Te Phogan mode is lke the natural minor scale but with a fatted second degree. The half step between the tonic and 2nd degree is unusual to aur ears, and yields an exotic favor. This is a common ‘Galen Spanish Flamenco musi and heavy metal chord progressions where the tonic is E, but Fis a common chard in the progression: Is the third mode of the major scale. F# Phrygian Pm Em Bm chmtbs a D G Ftm Em Bm A combs Bm cémtss Fim Bm Am Em Am bm > am Em " THE LYDIAN MODE | tre yeian mode's tke the major sale but with a raced 4th degree, The sound ofthe rased 4th was expoted by the so-called Impressonisic composers ofthe late 1 Sh century, che among therm Caude Debussy. This sound was Picked up by modem jazz players tke McCoy Ter and Ceo! Tver and mare recety by Steve Va. tis the fourth mode of the major sce. C Lydian c D Em Em 12 THE MIROLYDIAN MODE | Peraps he mos common ofthe modes (ex th loan and Aeolian), the Mohan made is sed ae tes, Cate melodies ard Apactn or meurtsin mie. The seventh chord fered by the notes Tribe Micydan mode Ba dominant7th or V7, adits ts chord thats used in Bus progressions. t's ike a major sae wih a7, has major Stand, buts daar han the svaghtmaor sce fs the fh mode of re major se Gi] CMixolydian G Dm Gm © Emtbs Ga F Gm © (@) F Mixolydian F Bb Dm Gm AmT99 Dm om bm 13, THE LOCRIAN MODE | the Locian mode isthe final or seventh mode of the major sale, and composers and theoreticans argue thet it is only theoretical and has no real value 38a stand-alone mode. Part of the problem é that the made has no per- fec-fith relationship to ts own dominant or five chord—the intervals the troublesome trtone ('S or #4), Therefore there's no real sass in its own 1 chord. Its interval makeip forms the natural minor scale with a 52 and h5, Nevertheless, composers have found advantages to this ‘dficut” sound, Heavy metal progressions in E that have an F chord and a Br chord are exploiting the Locrian sound, A Locrian amTbs = Bb F Dm Gm Bb Am7b5 Eb Bb F Dm Gm Bb Am755 D Locrian Dawrbs cm Bb cy Deths Fm eb Bb cm Dmrss ab Gm Cm Gm mas Ab mos 14 “The diminished sale can imply no tonality or several, depending how you look at isan arrbiguous sour and tis this ambiguty that composers and improvisers have fours so useful. The chord formes bythe érin- ished scale, the diminished 7th chord, is made up of consecutive minor 3rds and contains two trtones. I's known as 2 symmetric chord because begining on any of ts tones and proceeding by minor 3rds yield the same chord. (This isnot true of most cther chords) There are only tee ferent diminished chords inal of musi! ks interval makeup | 213 4 65 b6 1h7(6). [5 CDiminishea on Ber cer wher on eer oro or a7 EboT ayer on ayer BbeT ae 7 6] F Diminished Pr a7 coer aber re ner cnr aver Py cer pe? D7 Ab°T al 15 “This 6 also asymmetrical scale ad its chord is also a diminished 7th. So what's df= THE HALF-WHOLE DIMINISHED SCALE ferent! The in-between notes. Whereas ts chara tenes are the same asthe drin- ished sale (mn C: C Eb Gh), the non- E G Bb). This sce is used not over dminished chords (though it wl), but over V7 chords, especialy ones with ateations—55, 1, #9, You se, the non-chord tones form a V7 chord. € Half-Whole Diminished cre FAT one FeTHO cons FATS: cro rems one (33) F Half-Whole Diminished Fn9 Brb0 re Bris Fs Bhs Frag BIS Fag 16 THE WHOLE TONE SCALE ‘The only other common symmetrical scale i the whole tone scale, which consists ofall whole steps (| 23 #4 85 $6), Whereas thee are ony tree cilerent dminshed chord, there are jist two diferent whale tone scales, the one stating on A, and the ater stag on Bh. Al ther whole tone scales wil ve the saree members as One ofthese two scales. The whole tone sale sounds “modem,” ‘az and “Debust-ie" (ater the catia composer Claude Debussy who + exploted the scale’ posites tots ulest pote, Presented here ae two ingrings, one rr within a sgl postion, and the other moving Up (er down) the neck using a symmetrical fingering pattern A Whole Tone ants certs rts B7ts DETES 7s arts [3] A Whole Tone (Symmetrical) arts bres cits parts F785 74S rs eres ce7es pres ATs py7ts ares 7 THE BLUES SCALE | tic te permoric minor sale (nA: AC D E G) and add one not, the 45 (6) ard youl have the blues sale socnote scl thats perhaps the most popular sale for rock guar (ore popular tan even the major scale). Ws Presented herein is mossed form, fen cled the “home poston where the roots on the Ist nger, Ist and éth rns. + Gi) ABiues ar br B ar Here fan exercise that kes you For 3rd to 8th postion using jit the ten ofthe blues sale Pay cose atetiono the ingerings inthe standard musicnota- THE BLUES SCALE wrri posrion sHFTS ‘on, as these wil best faditate the poston shifts. [2] A Blues with Position Shifts ar p= es were gat 18 THE MIRO-BLUES SCALE | te bve: ste ty isefcontins ro major 3rd, yet a ror 3rd appears inthe chord used for stone the (peed |, 3, 5,47) There by aking major 3, yout havea the chord tones ofthe tone palibe as medic pote The Mio Biss scale has ements of the Mclydan moce becsise ofthe major Sr and 7. The Mho- Blues scale ys 3 more tradtona-ves sounc than jt he blues scale alone [33] A Mixo-Blues a br Lied Here's an execs tat will bing you from 3rd poston to 7h ug the notes ofthe Mio Blues sale. The fve crore adjacent notes (= (CED Eh and E) recess the ce of plying successive Fes wih the same lt-hand freer atectrique common n casa ar pine [34] A Mixo-Blues with Position Shifts ar br a Jaz players and modem composers have aways iked the exotic sound of the Lydian mode, THE LYDIAN-DOMINANT SCALE ‘and the dominant mode is also a very versatile tool, so why not combine them? The mixture i more unusual han ether mode by fee fs ntanal aructureis | 2'3 845 617. Kyou start onthe fourth degree youl have the Super Locran mode. Use te [ydlan-Dorinant mode over V7 chords N7 chords, 17 chores for zy. bluesy sound (3) CLydian-Dominant crt) eg) eisai) ee Ftmbs Bhs Ents am? Db ‘omamnayr) oetes = wi erict =

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