Re: [Harp-L] Blues scale vs. Pentatonic scale

[Vince Meghrouni <Foomcorp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

What you stated for the pentatonic scale is the major pentatonic scale.

The pentatonic scale the guitar players you've encountered are  
referring to the minor pentatonic scale, which is, using your  
nomenclature:

I + IIIb + IV + V + VIIb

Which, if you'll notice, becomes the blues scale when you add a  
passing chromatic tone between the IV & V

And, if you'll notice, start a major pentatonic on the VI (or think  
of it as the fifth note of the major pentatonic scale) and you get a  
minor pentatonic scale.  Start a minor pentatonic on the second note  
of that minor pentatonic, and you'll get a major pentatonic.

Let's use notes, not numbers:

C Major pentatonic:

C D E G A

A Minor pentatonic:

A C D E G

A Minor blues scale:

A C D Db E G A

Hope this makes sense.

By the way, I've found that the major pentatonic scale works very  
well not only in country, but in R & B and Rock n' Roll.  You use it  
a little differently, but it's a good glue scale to go between blues  
and dominant sounds.

Rex "Rich" Tobago
Professional musical instrument owner


On Oct 30, 2007, at 7:54 PM, Guy Buxman wrote:

> Playing harp in a garage band and performing at many jams around  
> Southern
> California, I routinely encounter guitar players who assert that  
> the blues
> scale is merely the pentatonic scale with a few flattened notes.   
> Now I'm
> only just learning about music theory so I don't claim to be an  
> expert;
> however the reading I've done recently describes a distinct scale  
> for blues.
>
> If I understand it rightly, the blues scale is:
> I + III b + IV + V b + V + VII b
>
> and the pentatonic scale which, according to David Harp, is most  
> commonly
> used for country/western is:
> I + II + III + V + VI
>
> Is there any real correlation between the pentatonic and the blues  
> scales?
>
> - GB
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