Guitar-Music-Theory.com Forum » Topic: Difference Between Major & Minor Pentatonic Scale

Guitar-Music-Theory.com Forum » Topic: Difference Between Major & Minor Pentatonic Scale http://guitar-music-theory.com/bbpress/topic.php?id=470 Guitar theory questions and answers en-US Fri, 18 May 2012 02:03:38 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 <![CDATA[Search]]> q http://guitar-music-theory.com/bbpress/search.php DesiSerna on "Difference Between Major & Minor Pentatonic Scale" http://guitar-music-theory.com/bbpress/topic.php?id=470#post-667 Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:46:55 +0000 DesiSerna 667@http://guitar-music-theory.com/bbpress/ <blockquote>"If playing in "Am" pentatonic, the first note at the fifth fret is "A" therefore it is a minor scale.Â When moved down 3 frets the "A" at fret five becomes the second note therefore making it an "A" major scale.Â Question; The first note of the "A" major scale seems to be an "F"# so isn't this really an "F#" minor pentatonic, or am I not understanding this correctly?" </blockquote> F minor and A major pentatonic are the same notes, same patterns. The only difference in the two keys is which note is functioning as the root. For example, <a class="postlink" href="http://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarMusicTheoryTab#p/c/B4C199B6442607A9/0/Olh3DAQaEwY">"Amie" by Pure Prairie League"</a> uses the patterns over an A major chord. So you hear everything revolve around the A note in the scale. This produces a major tonality. The solo to "Over the Hills and Far Away" by Led Zeppelin uses the same patterns but over an F# minor chord. So you hear everything revolve around the F# note in the scale.Â This produces a minor tonality.Â By the way, when you're playing over chords it doesn't matter which note you start on. Any note in the key is fair game. I say this so that you won't get hung up on which note you begin playing a pentatonic pattern from. What you're playing over is more important than which note in the pattern you're starting from. I demonstrate this at the end of my <a class="postlink" href="http://guitar-music-theory.com/pentatonic-dvd.html">pentatonic scale DVD</a>. This musical concept is also explained in <a class="postlink" href="http://guitar-music-theory.com/fretboard-theory.html">Fretboard Theory</a> Chapter 8: Modes.