Construction Basics

Historically speaking, the major scale is the fundamental scale in Western music. It is a diatonic (seven-tone) scale formed by a specific sequence of whole (two fret) and half (one fret) steps. It is easiest to remember the sequence if you view it as two “whole-whole-half” patterns, separated by a whole step.

When this is applied to a string on the fretboard, the major scale emerges. Below, the starting note (or root) is C, so this is a C major scale, played all on one string.

The steps of a major scale are numbered 1–2–3–4–5–6–7. (The octave root may be shown as either 8 or 1.) Half steps appear between tones 3–4 and 7–8. All other steps are whole steps.

When the major scale is “collapsed” and played across the neck rather than on a single string, the common single-octave major shape below emerges. Play it in seventh position. (Notes on the 7th fret are played with your index finger.) The root note—C, steps 1 and 8—is shown with circled dots.

Other tonalities are formed by shifting the whole pattern to begin on other root notes, but the relative spacing and the numbers for any major scale always remain the same, and reflect each tone’s intervallic relationship to the root.

All other scales may be viewed as being alterations of the major scale. For example, the minor pentatonic scale (a common five-tone minor scale) omits the 2nd and 6th steps, and flats the 3rd step (a minor 3rd) and the 7th step (a minor 7th).

Below, the minor pentatonic pattern is shown starting on the note C. Notice the three-fret intervals between the root–♭3rd and 5th–♭7th. These give the pentatonic scale a distinctly more aggressive character as compared to the diatonic scale.

When played across the neck, this common single-octave minor pentatonic shape emerges. Play it in eighth position (notes on the 8th fret are played with your index finger).