[AX7221]

Here's

a diagram that I used to learn the pentatonic minor scale. I attached to another thread a while ago, so its just a link to old attachment instead of the expected thumb and stuff (btw does anyone know if i make it appear like a regular attachment w/o uploading it a second time?). Now I'll explain the diagram, when ever I show it to somebody they always think its too complicated, but the details are very useful. Now as we all know the root is very important, its very good to create a feel of completion/resolution and so forth, (its also imperative to play in the correct key, i e the root has the same note name as the key). Anyways, the root performs a very distint function, but not just the root. Perfect 5ths also have a distinct feel, in my opinion its second strongest, the root is the first. Minor Thirds have a nice feel to them too, its difficult to describe them with words, but basically each note of the scale has a different feel/job to them. So, like all other scale diagrams I made the root a different color than the rest. The root is black. But unlike all the rest of the scale diagrams I made every note of the scale a different color. Ascending the scale starting on the root is like this: Black, Blue, Orange, Red, Purple, (and back to) Black. The reason I like this is because once I can figure out what the blue one sounds like, i can go around any octave and I'll roughly know what the blue one's will sound like. Like I'd view other scale diagrams as maps w/o street names, you know which parts are streets, but that's it, so you can use the different color of each note (the different harmony of each note) to craft your melody.

(another important thing, you can modulate your tonal center from A in the minor pent to C, creating the major pent, which will adjust the feel of the different notes. Just say you have the A minor pent, A, C, D, E, G, A the 'C' will have the complection of a minor third harmony, however if you play a certain way you will make C a reference point in the listener's and your mind, and you will be playing the C major pent, and the same note C will have a different complection. This will happen inadvertantly as you first start using the scale, and it will throw you off in determining what a minor 3rd sounds like, but over time you will be able to do it no problem).

(another thing, is based on the chords that are in the backing track the notes that you are playing are affected, this used to make me very confused before I realized what a chord tone was, so this will also make it challenging to play a melody by ear (which in a nut shell is what i think improvising is)).

(another thing, the minor pent is the minor scale with 2 notes taken out, a perfect second and a minor 6th, for completeness sake i would give those 2 notes a try to see what you think, I'm almost certain you would rather do w/o them based on the herman li youtube videos, but its knowledge to you)

(btw i saw your post on doing what hendix did or something to that effect a while back, so its nice to see your back to g4b&b and what that entails)