Building Major Scale Patterns

Hello Barrett,

First, I want to tell you that your GFW book is one of most successful books that I ever found about learning guitar. Thanks !

I'm studying alone - no teacher. I have some difficulties though in understanding the purpose of root shapes. What is the logic behind root shapes ? Why they are there?

And another question - about building major scale patterns. According to major scale formula it goes WWH,WWWH. When I look at major D pattern (p.24) I see completely different picture, nothing that looks even close to the formula. Why is that? The book doesn't explain that one very clearly.
Thanks in advance for your answer.
Daniel

Hi Daniel,

Thanks for your message, and I appreciate your kind comments about my work.

I'd like to start by answering your second question.

To be clear to everybody reading this, we're talking about the major scale pattern on page 24 (Exercise 12, problem 1) in Chapter 7 of the Guitar Fretboard Workbook.

Rather than just show you a scale fingering pattern and saying, "memorize this," the book sets you up with a few basics that you'll need in order to understand and build your own scale patterns:

1) The root shapes from Chapter 2.

2) The major scale formula: all whole steps except for half
steps from 3-4 and 7-8.
1 2 3^4 5 6 7^8, introduced on page 20 as a one-string scale pattern.

3) How to play whole steps and half steps when changing strings. (This is covered on page 23.)

Make sure you've memorized those 3 things first. The exercise will be confusing unless you know them pretty well. Now we'll walk through the scale-building exercise on step at a time.

The D roots are on the 2nd string, 3rd fret, and the 5th string, 5th fret. Let's find the root shape first and put those circles in. Here’s how it looks in tablature.

E ---------|
B --3------|
G ---------|
D ---------|
A -----5---|
E ---------|

At this point we have two roots. When building a scale, the lowest one is the easiest to start from, because it is from there we can count up the entire major scale formula.

We'll start with the lower root (on the 5th string 5th fret) as "1." The scale from this note will proceed 1 2 3^4 5 6 7^8. (Half steps from 3-4 and 7-8.)

Unlike in Chapter 6, we now want to stay put, so the hand is in position to play the higher root when we get there. No moving around. So, the lower root ("note 1") should be played on string 5, fret 5, with the PINKY or 4th finger.

The fingering is given below the tablature. LH means "Left Hand."

E ---------|
B ---------|
G ---------|
D ---------|
A --5------|
E ---------|
LH: 4

Note 2 is a whole step higher. We are already using the 4th finger for note 1, so (as we learned on page 23) we can play a whole step on the next string (string 4) at fret 2. This note should be played with the index finger. Remember
you're looking at tablature here. It's different from a neck diagram---the notes are written in the order you play them.

E ----------|
B ----------|
G ----------|
D -----2----|
A --5-------|
E ----------|
LH: 4 1


Note 3 is a whole step up from note 2. This too can be played on string 4, with the ring finger at fret 4.

E ----------|
B ----------|
G ----------|
D ----2-4---|
A --5-------|
E ----------|
LH: 4 1 3


Note 4 is a half step from note 3. This is just one fret higher and so should be played with the pinky finger.

E -----------|
B -----------|
G -----------|
D ----2-4-5--|
A --5--------|
E -----------|
LH: 4 1 3 4

From 4 to 5 is a whole step, so we must ascend to string 3, three frets down the neck as we did before. So step 5 is on string 3, fret 2. Index finger.

E -------------|
B -------------|
G ----------2--|
D ----2-4-5----|
A --5----------|
E -------------|
LH: 4 1 3 4 1

5 to 6 is a whole step, which we can play also on string 3, two frets above the previous note, with the ring finger.

E --------------|
B --------------|
G ----------2-4-|
D ----2-4-5-----|
A --5-----------|
E --------------|
LH: 4 1 3 4 1 3


6 to 7 is a whole step, but we just used our ring finger. Using the pinky finger on the same string (without stretching or shifting) will only get us a half step. So we
play note 7 on the 2nd string at fret 2. As shown on page 23 of the book, this gives us a whole step when crossing from string 3 to string 2.

E ----------------|
B --------------2-|
G ----------2-4---|
D ----2-4-5-------|
A --5-------------|
E ----------------|
LH: 4 1 3 4 1 3 1


From 7 to 8 is a half step, which we can play with the middle finger on string 2, fret 3.

E ------------------|
B --------------2-3-|
G ----------2-4-----|
D ----2-4-5---------|
A --5---------------|
E ------------------|
LH: 4 1 3 4 1 3 1 2

At this point we have played/drawn one octave's worth of scale, from D to D. The guitar has more D major scale notes available in this position above what we've drawn. To continue the scale higher we count up the formula again, treating note 8 as the new "1."

E ----------------|
B -3--------------|
G ----------------|
D ----------------|
A ----------------|
E ----------------|

From 1 to 2 in the scale is a whole step; a two fret distance. We play note 2 with our 4th finger at fret 5 of string 2.

E ----------------|
B -3-5------------|
G ----------------|
D ----------------|
A ----------------|
E ----------------|
LH:2 4

From 2 to 3 in the scale is also a whole step. This is a 3-fret distance down the fretboard when going from string 2 to string 1. Use your index finger for the last note in this tab.

E -----2----------|
B -3-5------------|
G ----------------|
D ----------------|
A ----------------|
E ----------------|
LH:2 4 1

From 3 to 4 in the scale formula is a half step, a one-fret distance on the same string. We’ll play it with the second finger.

E -----2-3--------|
B -3-5------------|
G ----------------|
D ----------------|
A ----------------|
E ----------------|
LH:2 4 1 2

The highest D major scale note we can reach without shifting or stretching is the 5th, which is a whole step above note 4. The little finger plays this at the 5th fret.

E -----2-3-5------|
B -3-5------------|
G ----------------|
D ----------------|
A ----------------|
E ----------------|
LH:2 4 1 2 4

To get the available D major scale notes BELOW the lower root, we count the major scale formula backwards, treating this low "1" as "8." Again, we'll be counting DOWN the major scale formula from 8 to 1.
8^7 6 5 4^3 2 1

E ---------|
B ---------|
G ---------|
D ---------|
A --5------|
E ---------|
LH: 4

From 8 to 7 is a half step (one fret when played on the same string). We can play note 7 on string 5, fret 4, with the ring finger.

E ---------|
B ---------|
G ---------|
D ---------|
A --5-4----|
E ---------|
LH: 4 3

From 7 to 6 is a whole step. We can play that with the index finger on fret 2.

E ----------|
B ----------|
G ----------|
D ----------|
A --5-4-2---|
E ----------|
LH: 4 3 1

6 to 5 is a whole step. To follow the "no shifting" rule we have to play this on string 6, at fret 5. Pinky finger.

E -----------|
B -----------|
G -----------|
D -----------|
A --5-4-2----|
E --------5--|
LH: 4 3 1 4

5 to 4 is a whole step. That's two frets down; at fret 3 on string 6. Play it with your 2nd (middle) finger.

E ------------|
B ------------|
G ------------|
D ------------|
A --5-4-2-----|
E --------5-3-|
LH: 4 3 1 4 2


Finally we can use our index finger to play one last half step to get from 4 to 3.

E ---------------|
B ---------------|
G ---------------|
D ---------------|
A --5-4-2--------|
E --------5-3-2--|
LH: 4 3 1 4 2 1

When all notes are included, from root to root as well as those we can reach above or below without shifting, we have created fingering pattern 1 of the D major scale.

E -----------------------------2-3-5-|
B -----------------------2-3-5-------|
G -------------------2-4-------------|
D -------------2-4-5-----------------|
A -------2-4-5-----------------------|
E -2-3-5-----------------------------|
LH:1 2 4 1 3 4 1 3 4 1 3 1 2 4 1 2 4

I suggest taking a break now, and reviewing this process and the scale pattern it creates every day for a week or longer.

When you are clear on it and can play the scale from memory, start the entire process again with pattern 2 of the D major scale. The roots are on string 5, fret 5, and string 3, fret 7. The lower root should be played with the second finger.

E ---------------|
B ---------------|
G -----7---------|
D ---------------|
A --5------------|
E ---------------|

**************************

To your second question---why do we study root shapes---it's for several reasons. First, they show us how to find and name all the notes on the fretboard. If you know the name of one note on the guitar, any note, you can use the 5 root shapes to find the same note in all its other positions on the neck.

Root shapes also provide us with the starting point for building chords, scales, and melodies. The root is the only note that stays the same whether a chord or scale is major, minor, augmented, or diminished or any other quality. For example, look at the Pattern 1 root shape in D again.

E ---------|
B --3------|
G ---------|
D ---------|
A -----5---|
E ---------|

The D major chord in this pattern looks like this. The notes in this chord are Root, 3rd, 5th, Root.

E ------|
B --3---|
G --2---|
D --4---|
A --5---|
E ------|

The D minor chord has the same roots but the 3rd is different.

E ------|
B --3---|
G --2---|
D --3---|
A --5---|
E ------|

The D augmented chord has the same roots but the 5th is different.

E ------|
B --3---|
G --3---|
D --4---|
A --5---|
E ------|

The D diminished chord has the same roots but the 3rd and 5th are different. Don't worry if you can't make this stretch; it's for demonstration.

E ------|
B --3---|
G --1---|
D --3---|
A --5---|
E ------|

I hope I am reading your question correctly. It suddenly occurs to me that you might mean, "Why should I learn this if I just want to play some songs that somebody else has already written?". The easy answer is, you don't. You can just memorize the places where you are supposed to put your fingers.

The real answer comes by way of an analogy. If you were learning to drive a car to a store, someone could show you only the exact moves needed to get there: turn the ignition key until the engine starts, hold the brake down and put the car in drive, and so on, in excruciatingly exact detail until you turn off the car in front of the store!

That method is dangerous. Instead you learn the general principles for safe driving, the location of the place you're headed, and a mental map of the roads in the area.

Guitar playing is the same. Nobody will die if you mess up, but the whole process is easier if you understand and know your options if you take a wrong turn.

-Barrett Tagliarino