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How many of you guitarists out there can play in any key, any scale in any position on the neck? I would lay a bet that there are more that can’t than can. This lesson will put you on the right path to breaking out of those comfortable boxes and shapes that you have probably become used to.

Most guitar players are victims of their own quick-fix mentality. “Why learn every scale in every key if I can use a ‘cookie-cutter shape’ scale pattern that I can move around the guitar neck and play the same notes?” What happens is that a large number of players know their scales if somebody holds their hand and takes them to the root note or starting point of the scale, but what they don’t learn is what notes they are playing and how they all relate together. And, more importantly, how to use the scales to make music that doesn’t sound like they’re “trapped in a box”.

The first step is to understand the western chromatic scale. Unlike other scales such as major, minor, diminished etc.. there is only one chromatic scale as it includes every single note available to us in the western music system. The spacing (interval) between each note is a semitone (1/2 step). For those who may not know, it is worth pointing out that the interval of a semitone is the space of 1 fret on the guitar. Most players will practice the chromatic scale starting on any given point and play up and down the scale in a number of octaves. (e.g. starting on A and finishing on A would be one octave).

The western chromatic scale:

One key thing worth mentioning here is that there is no #/b note between both B & C and E & F. To be able to play in certain keys, however, B#/Cb and E#/Fb are used:

B# enharmonically equals C (enharmonically means sounds the same as)

Cb enharmonically equals B

E# enharmonically equals F

Fb enharmonically equals E

A good way to demonstrate the chromatic scale for guitarists is to start on the open A string (5th string) and work your way up the neck one semitone at a time. As you do this, name each note as you play it and, if possible, sing or hum the pitch as well. Use the following diagram to help you move up the 5th string and name all the notes. To prevent yourself from learning it as a pattern or shape, try playing it many times with different finger patterns. Try 1-finger at a time, and then any 2-, 3- & 4-finger combination.

Once you are accustomed with the notes, try this same exercise on the remaining 5 strings (the 2 E strings will of course have the same note names on the same frets). Find your open string note on the chromatic scale diagram and work your way clockwise round the scale one semitone (fret) at a time, naming each note as you go. At this stage don’t worry if you are not remembering where every note is. This will come later. If you manage to memorize a couple of notes here and there, however, you are on the right lines.

The chromatic scale is the only scale that is built entirely from semitones. Every other type of scale (major, minor, diminished etc..) is built upon a particular series of semitones (1/2 steps) and tones (whole steps). (A tone is twice the size of a semitone and is, therefore, the space of 2 frets apart on the guitar). The next step in learning every note on the neck is to play a C major scale up and down one string at a time. I will briefly explain the construction of the major scale but for further and more detailed information please look at “Introducing the Major Scale” by Richie Jovie and “Scales - Major” by Paul Somers.

The series of tones and semitones of a major scale (or “major scale formula”) is as follows:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

T T S T T T S

T = tone S = semitone

To work out the notes of the major scale starting on C, we can use the chromatic scale diagram to find the notes. If we start on C, we can work out the notes of a C major scale one note at a time.

C ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

T T S T T T S

To find the 2nd note move round the chromatic scale diagram clockwise 1 Tone (2 semitones). You should find that the 2nd note is D. You can now fill in the 2nd note of your C major scale.

C D ? ? ? ? ? ?

T T S T T T S

To find the 3rd note move round the chromatic scale diagram clockwise 1 Tone (2 semitones). You should find that the 3rd note is E. You can now fill in the 3rd note of your C major scale.

C D E ? ? ? ? ?

T T S T T T S

To find the 4th note move round the chromatic scale diagram clockwise 1 Semitone. You should find that the 4th note is F. You can now fill in the 4th note of your C major scale.

C D E F ? ? ? ?

T T S T T T S

By continuing this process until all the gaps are filled in, you should work out the following:

C D E F G A B C

T T S T T T S

Now we have worked out the notes of the C major scale, it is hopefully clear that this particular scale has every ‘natural’ note in it and has no #’s or b’s. We can use this information to learn all of the natural notes across the whole neck, one string at a time. 2 key things to try and memorize are that the intervals (space) between E&F and B&C are semitones. The interval between every other note is a tone. Knowing this will help you as you come to play the scale up and down the guitar neck. Assuming you know the note you are on you have to move up 1 tone (2 frets) to find the next note of the scale unless you are on a B or E, in which case you have to move up a semitone (1 fret) instead.

Starting with the 1st string (E string), the lowest note on the string that is also in the key of C major is the open E note itself. The next note up the scale from E is F and is 1 semitone higher. F is therefore 1 fret higher so is on the 1st fret. The next note is G and is a tone higher than F so is 2 frets above it on the 3rd fret. Continue this process until you have covered the whole string. Take it slowly and try not to rely on the same fingering. A good method is to use different combinations of 1-, 2-, 3- and 4-finger patterns to prevent you from just memorizing a set finger pattern and not learning the note names.

An important thing to remember is not to move onto the next string until you have memorized the notes on the first string.

Here are the notes on the 1st string to get you started and to make sure you’re playing it correctly:

Try writing out the scale like this for every string, remembering to start on the lowest note on the string that is also in the scale. When you have played and memorized this one scale for all 6 strings, try improvising using the scale across the whole neck. A good way to start is to set yourself limitations:

i) Improvise on 1 string at a time.

ii) Improvise on 2 adjacent strings at a time.

iii) Improvise on 2 non-adjacent strings at a time.

iv) Improvise on 3 adjacent strings at a time.

v) Improvise on all 6 strings at a time.

Together with these limitations, you can set other boundaries such as improvising with only 1 finger at a time, 2 fingers etc… There are many other possible limitations and boundaries you can try but you don’t have to try every possibility before you should start seeing results. These limitations are designed to help you learn (or even re-learn) the C major scale without relying on a set shape and pattern. The set fingerings will also help you to learn not to rely on the same patterns of notes which will mean that you don’t end up playing the same licks again and again.

To fully learn and memorize the notes of the C major scale across the whole neck on every string is the longest and hardest job of this lesson. It will take time and effort to do properly but the rewards will be demonstrated in your playing.

The next parts of this lesson will possibly look harder, but believe me, once you know fully and without hesitation where the notes of the C major scale are, this next part will seem easier to learn in comparison.

If we look at the notes of the G major scale using the same method and formula discussed earlier we find the notes are as follows:

G A B C D E F# G

T T S T T T S

The notes of C major and G major are almost identical. The only thing that has changed is that F becomes F#. If you’ve done the previous exercises properly you’ve already learned where all but one note of the G major scale is across the whole neck. Play the same exercises for the G major as you did for the C major scale but wherever there is F natural, raise it 1 semitone (1 fret) to F#.

The notes on the 1st string are shown below:

When you have a firm grasp of the G major scale, try learning the remaining major scales in the following order:

D major: D E F# G A B C# D (the notes of G major changing C to C#)

A major: A B C# D E F# G# A (the notes of D major changing G to G#)

E major: E F# G# A B C# D# E (the notes of A major changing D to D#)

B major: B C# D# E F# G# A# B (the notes of E major changing A to A#)

F# major: F# G# A# B C# D# E# F# (the notes of B major changing E to E#)

C# major: C# D# E# F# G# A# B# C# (the notes of F# major changing B to B#)

F major: F G A Bb C D E F (the notes of C major changing B to Bb)

Bb major: Bb C D Eb F G A Bb (the notes of F major changing E to Eb)

Eb major: Eb F G Ab Bb C D Eb (the notes of Bb major changing A to Ab)

Ab major: Ab Bb C Db Eb F G Ab (the notes of Eb major changing D to Db)

Db major: Db Eb F Gb Ab Bb C Db (the notes of Ab major changing G to Gb)

Gb major: Gb Ab Bb Cb Db Eb F Gb (the notes of Db major changing C to Cb)

Cb major: Cb Db Eb Fb Gb Ab Bb Cb (the notes of Gb major changing F to Fb)

This lesson, if learned thoroughly, will enable you to eventually know all the notes across the neck on all strings and also to improvise in any major key. It is not a quick fix method, but you will see results in your playing and in your understanding of the guitar if you do practice it properly. A good tip in practicing this is to write out what is new to you. This helps it to sink in a little more easily. For instance, just like I’ve written out the notes of C major and G major on the 1st string for you, write out the same but for every other string, making sure you also write the notes above and that you “say it as you play it”. If you simply play these exercises and don’t learn what you’re playing you’re not going to move forwards at all.

Any comments or questions please get in touch.

more articles by Mike Holt

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