How to Play Major Pentatonic Scales On Guitar

This article is all about learning the major pentatonic scales on guitar. Once you have gotten acquainted with this kind of scale, you will easily be able to identify all types of music, including country, pop, jazz, classic, rock, and worship guitar.

But first, you have to learn the most common shapes for the major pentatonic scale and how they are made. You can do this by starting out with a major scale shape while taking away two notes away, which are the 4th and the 7th scale, to create the major pentatonic scale.

The major pentatonic scales on guitar are somewhat similar to minor pentatonic scale because they almost share the same notes. The formula for major pentatonic scale is 1 2 3 4 5 6 and 1. For example, the C major pentatonic has the same notes as the Am pentatonic. In C, you will have C, D, E, F, G, A, and C. These notes are located on the neck and the patterns you should use are the ones mentioned earlier.

The major pentatonic is used when you find a minor pentatonic. It sounds a bit happier and more cheerful than the minor pentatonic, which sound a bit melancholic. This also sounds good over major chords and power chords so it is perfect for rock and jazz guitar songs.

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Every single major pentatonic scale on guitar follows the same pattern – W, W, W + H, W, W, + H or whole step, whole step, whole step, and a half step, - whole step, whole step, and another half step. A step is the distance between two notes. The half step is equivalent to 1 fret while the whole step is equivalent to 2 frets.

On the guitar, you can play a whole major scale up to the 12th fret with just one string. It is necessary for guitar players to memorize the major pentatonic scale on guitar for each key, starting from A to G. If possible, get a diagram and distinguish the scales for each key. Once you have listed the scales from 2nd to 6th, memorize them all and play them on your guitar.

The major pentatonic scales are kind of difficult to understand, especially for beginners. However, with a whole lot of practice, you are sure to be able to learn and master not only the major pentatonic but also the minor pentatonic scales on guitar.

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