Speaking of scales...

...can anybody tell me how the screw Im supposed to learn them? Ive been playing for about seven months now. Mainly off tabs, fav. solos, riffs, and licks. But I want to be able to improvise.

My friend who has been playing for about 6 years now says that for improvisation, scales are really important. So I thought, `OK, enough solos and stuff, Ill find some scale tabs.` Accept there arbt any on the internet... This website does have some, but many of them seem strange and are made up by someone. Can anyone tell me a book or a website or something that will teach me more common scales?

My friends say Im pretty quick to learn guitar, but I need these invaluable scales. Can somone give me some advice??

A few things come to mind when reading this thread.

Scales and Improvising (and you)
1) I can see how scales come in handy with improvising, but in actuality they're only as important as you allow them to be. All scales are is a selection of notes in an octave. Thus it gives you a certain direction with each scale.

2) This site does have scales and they do seem to be made up by someone. But so does every scale that you're going to find outside of this website. All scales were conceived by someone at some point in time. If you really want a book or something then I'd say check out the guitar grimiore for scales but as far as websites go check this one www.guitartricks.com and click the link at the top that says scales.

Than can I ask which of this sites scales tabs are more... traditional? Tried and true?

Hmm, well, if I was to recommend a starting point I'd probably take the old fashioned route and suggest the major scale and/or any of the minor scales, or pentatonic scales. Only thing I can really recommend with practicing scales is focus on one at a time and learn that scale everywhere on the neck. Find all the notes in that scale on the neck and practice them profusely. That being said, good luck to you and if I didn't spell something out well enough, speak up.

If you're looking for an all out scale book that has pretty much every scale imaginable in it... with all the notes a lon the fingerboard.... check the Guitar Grimoire scale books. They're awesome... they also come with dvd's. I would check them out if I were you

Originally Posted by: aschlemanIf you're looking for an all out scale book that has pretty much every scale imaginable in it... with all the notes a lon the fingerboard.... check the Guitar Grimoire scale books. They're awesome... they also come with dvd's. I would check them out if I were you

The DVD for the scales and modes is pretty weak in my opinion. I would opt for the books. I too am still trying to figure out all of this mode stuff. I ordered "Fretboard Logic I & II", I have read a lot of pretty good reviews of the books and the DVD's.

You might want to give this program a shot. http://www.guitarscalesmethod.com/

I bought it last month. It's a very fresh and different approach to learning scales. I've tried learning 'em before and just got too bored with it all. This program at least makes it interesting and 'do-able' (IMHO anyways).

That's my recommendation. Hope it helps. :D

http://www.all-guitar-chords.com/guitar_scales.php


That site gives you the fingerings for every scale imaginable.

My link is way sexier.

you could just go the best way and LEARN how the scales work? ...you know music theory...that's is the best approach may not be as easy or fun but you get a much better understanding of the scales themselves and better improv. understandings

Wow. Some sweet links, thanks guys.

I read some reviews on that Guitar Grimoire and Im intrigued. The only problem is if Ill be able to find it in Tokyo :confused:

Scales are really easy... but what you REALLY need to know, the most important thing, are the notes on your fretboard. Learn all the notes, where all the C's are, and where all of the D's are and #F and #G and EVERY single note. It sounds a bit hard, but it isn't.. really, just practice.

http://guitarsecrets.com/all_notes.htm

Check that site out.
When you have learned the notes, you just have to know this:

the major scale is this -> T T H T T T H

What that means? that if you're figuring out the C major scale, you go :
C (one Tone appart from:) D (One tone apart from) E (One Half-tone apart from) F (1 T. Appart from) G (1 T.Ap.Fr.) A (1 Tone) B (1 Half-tone) C

got the idea?

For exampe, the A -Major scale:

A (<- T ->) B (T) #C (H) D (T) E (T) #F (T) #G (H) A

This means that if you play a song that's in A Major (meaning that it has all of these chords) you can go nuts with that scale, identifying those notes on the fretboard and just letting yourself go!

now... if you are the one playing the chords, you should know:

First note : Major chord
Second note : Minor chord
Third note : Minor chord
Fourth note : Major chord
Fifth note : Major chord
Sixth note : Minor chord
Seventh note : Diminished chord


And that's pretty much it for scales!!!
Searching for info, you'll start encountering modes, the jonian, locrian, dorian, lydian , mixolydian , phrygian modes, and they'll confuse you, but they're just for classifying scales... (check my post on modes on Music Theory before commenting on that..)

And minor scales.. well ... easy

T H T T H T T

and if you pay attention, you'll notice that it's the same Major formula, but "dragged" six steps to the left!

If you start a minor scale from the sixth note of a major scale, it's that same scale!! that's called a "relative minor"

For example:
C - Major Scale: C D E F G A B C
A - Minor Scale: A B C D E F G A

D - Major Scale: D E #F G A B #C D
B - Minor Scale: B #C D E #F G A B

Minor scales have other ways around, some notes change sometimes (descending harmonic) and all that, but that's really not important, if what you need is improvising.

If you're into writing music... classical music, you should go deeper into minor scales. But it isn't such a big deal.

And if you have a minor scale, and want to know which major scales corresponds to, then start counting from the 3rd step! and that's it!

So... Improvising.

No one really deepens in this. All texts just say "go nuts! anything counts!"
not really.

What music are you improvising? Is it blues? Metal? acoustic? flamenco?

You must have that in mind.
When you're playing blues, you should learn a lot of licks that will florish your jamming
When you're playing metal, try landing on the root notes.

If you see your friend playing a chord, then, undo that chord , and if you're lost in the improvisation, just land on one of the notes of that chord.

Let's say you have a C chord, and you're lost, then you could just land on C, or on G, or on E! (C chord: C, E , G)and it'll sound great!
When you're lost always go back to the chords, play them for some while.. get the "feel" again

Finally , practice improvisation alone... when i'm alone in my room, all i do is improvise things

I already forgot almost all of the songs i knew :p
but practice is all that matters! just practice

sit in your room, get some relaxing music, marty friedman don't know which album but has some really relaxing themes, and start playing on top

Add to your improvisation Slides, taps, sweeps of the current chord, all of those will help it.

Well ... hope this helps...