What scales do you use?

[Clint 55]

Re: What scales do you use?

I find that I rarely use pentatonic or blues scales in my playing. It is great when others do it...I just can't make them sound interesting to me...they sort of contain the ghost of guitarists' past.

u no like??!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Clint 55]

Re: What scales do you use?

How could I forget about pentatonic / blues and all those variations.

Yep, I'm a bluesman so my comfort zone is minor pentatonic and blues scale mixed with major pentatonic and mixolydian. Also for jazz and 8th note stuff I use several different scales like lydian dominant, diminished whole tone, or diminished. I made a tune with harmonic minor with a #4 - hungarian minor. Been trying to advance in faster rhythm soloing and for that I realized I have to really simplify. Minor pentatonic and blues in the 5 positions and natural minor. On the lookout for others which can be economical and fit the sound.

 

[Demanic]

Re: What scales do you use?

I like all of them. But I tend to randomly shift some of the positions anywhere from a half to 1 and 1/2 steps from the standard.

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[Demanic]

Re: What scales do you use?

I like all of them. But I tend to randomly shift some of the positions anywhere from a half to 1 and 1/2 steps from the standard.

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And I call it Jazz.

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[DankStar]

Re: What scales do you use?

I guess aeolian & its pentatonic counterpart as the root minor scales, but then I expand that to play it across the neck so I guess I'm picking up other modes when I do that. Seems weird to me to say I'm playing different modes when they all have the same notes - seems like one big scale to me, basically based on the major scale. But I'll throw in half steps basically adding the blues scale.

For giggles, I'll bust out scale books and play oddball scales but I never remember them after that and I can hardly see how to apply them.

A lot of times I'll just make up stuff using patterns that may or may not correspond to a scale (like 12-15 on every string)

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: What scales do you use?

How could I forget about pentatonic / blues and all those variations. Use them all the time as well.

Trying to use more mixolydian because I like the sound, but I can't seem to use it right...yet.

Easy. Use it over a dominant 7th chord. This works cause Myxo is a major scale with a lowered 7th.

For the average guitarist who more often than not, is accustomed to 12-bar blues, use it over the V7 chord on the way to the tonic (I). The lowered 7th paired with dominant 7th chord also raises the tension even more, before finally relaxing on the tonic.

You can also use it to spice up the banal major scale, making it sound less Bon Jovi/ Def Leppard like, you know...thanks to the lowered 7th that gives it more 'evil' feel.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: What scales do you use?

I find that I rarely use pentatonic or blues scales in my playing. It is great when others do it...I just can't make them sound interesting to me...they sort of contain the ghost of guitarists' past.

Oh you are too kind...ha..ha.. You are speaking the unspeakeable truth in a classy way.

 

[eclecticsynergy]

Re: What scales do you use?

Demented scales come in handy once in a while, too.

 

[dave74]

Re: What scales do you use?

Phygian
Natural Minor
Gypsy Minor
Augmented

 

[Mincer]

Re: What scales do you use?

Well, with any strange or exotic scale, you must derive the chords and chord progressions that they sound good over. It is difficult to use a strange order of notes (other than in passing) over conventional chord changes- the chords have to match the scale. I did write a series of articles on this site about this very thing.

 

[Clint 55]

Re: What scales do you use?

Melodic minor has some nifty modes.



For harmonic minor, I like locrian natty 6 and dorian #4 on the 2 and 4 chords in addition to the popular phrygian dominant. The others are a bit goofy.

 

[dave74]

Re: What scales do you use?

Anyone else have Al Politano's book? "the complete book of chords scales and arpeggios for the guitarist"
It's just a good reference that doesn't get too weighed-down with theory. Great for the uneducated player like myself.

 

[DankStar]

Re: What scales do you use?

Anyone else have Al Politano's book? "the complete book of chords scales and arpeggios for the guitarist"
It's just a good reference that doesn't get too weighed-down with theory. Great for the uneducated player like myself.

I love that one! Mine's pretty worn out, I've had it forever. I like how the diagrams are big, not tiny little weak-lined things.

There's some MI/GIT books I always come back to and 2 blues ones I like a lot (one by David Hamburger).

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: What scales do you use?

Anyone else have Al Politano's book? "the complete book of chords scales and arpeggios for the guitarist"
It's just a good reference that doesn't get too weighed-down with theory. Great for the uneducated player like myself.

No, but I have Russel’s Lydian Chromatic Theory For Tonal Organization. That one will do your head in!

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: What scales do you use?

I play by ear and keep the technical stuff subconscious rather than have it occupy my cognitive energy, slowing me down and interfering with fluidity, pace and creativity. So I couldn't tell you what scales I use, other than probably all of them.

 

[Mincer]

Re: What scales do you use?

Heh, learning stuff won't ever interfere with creativity. The trick is (with any skill) is to not rely on that alone.

 

[Gtrjunior]

Re: What scales do you use?

I guess aeolian & its pentatonic counterpart as the root minor scales, but then I expand that to play it across the neck so I guess I'm picking up other modes when I do that. Seems weird to me to say I'm playing different modes when they all have the same notes - seems like one big scale to me, basically based on the major scale. But I'll throw in half steps basically adding the blues scale.

For giggles, I'll bust out scale books and play oddball scales but I never remember them after that and I can hardly see how to apply them.

A lot of times I'll just make up stuff using patterns that may or may not correspond to a scale (like 12-15 on every string)

It is one big scale, not different modes.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: What scales do you use?

All this scale/ mode craze cracks me up. Truth be told, any guitar player accustomed to rock/ metal/ blues in general, should be able to get away with the ol' blues scale, cause rock chords are limited to two-fingered power chords.

Unless you have a keyboard player (or a rhythm guitar player playing clean) playing extended voicings on the background, those modes won't fit the entire scene properly.

You can't just throw any mode in there without any regard for the chords played on the background, you know.

I guess lack of understanding of chords is the reason why rock players have problem applying those exotic nautical/ super locrian scale...ouch!

 

[Aceman]

Re: What scales do you use?

If I'm thinking about what I'm playing, in order of use, I'd say -

Pentatonic - I use this for a ton of stuff, but I'm mostly a blues based player
Natural Minor - Probably the second most used
Major - I'll often use the major form to generate modes
Dorian - when Jazzin'
Then Harmonic Minor


I also use some hybrid things and some odd stuff occasional

Mostly I just play the Tab mode.

 

[Demanic]

Re: What scales do you use?

All of them. Though not always correctly or appropriately.

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