See Fret Numbers, below, for more information. For those that don’t you’ll have to rely on your knowledge of the fretboard to play the scale at the correct position.

Not all scale patterns provide a fret number. This tells you at which fret you should position your hand in order to play a specific scale (in this case an F pentatonic minor). The pattern above includes a fret number.

The circles on a scale pattern show you where to play the notes on the guitar neck. Scales are often played ascending then descending in one phrase without repeating the uppermost tonic note.

It shows where the fingers of the guitarist’s fretting hand should be placed in order to play a certain scale.Ī scale is a linear sequence of notes that starts on a tonic note and ends on the same note one or more octaves higher than the start note.

Guitar Scale Patterns: A Selection of Common and Exotic Guitar ScalesĪ guitar scale pattern is a simple visual representation of the guitar fretboard.

Movable / Transposable Guitar Scale Patterns.

Why Is There More Than One Scale Pattern For Each Scale?.

Why Are There Additional Notes In Guitar Scale Patterns?.

On this page you’ll find a selection of useful guitar scale patterns, plus information on what guitar scale patterns are and how to use them.

Why does a g flat not in g major scale