Lesson 10: All five pentatonic shapes (the whole neck), Intermediate Electric Guitar

Shape 1 is the 5th fret box. Shape 2 is the 7th-10th. The other three shapes complete the map.

A minor pentatonic, shape 3 (10th fret)

A minor pentatonic, shape 4 (12th fret)

A minor pentatonic, shape 5 (15th fret)

Shape 5 wraps back to a higher-octave shape 1. All five shapes are the same notes (A, C, D, E, G), just at different positions on the neck.

How the shapes overlap

Each shape shares its first and last frets with the neighboring shape. Visualize:


fret:  5   7   8   10  12  13  15
shape: [1][1 +2][2  +3][3 +4][4 +5][5]

Slide between shapes through the overlap notes. The whole neck is one connected scale.

The 12-bar blues challenge

Practice metronome

80BPM

Loop a 12-bar blues in A backing track. Solo using one shape per chorus:

Chorus 1: shape 1
Chorus 2: shape 2
Chorus 3: shape 3
Chorus 4: shape 4
Chorus 5: shape 5

Twelve bars in each shape. By chorus 5, you've covered the entire neck. The first time you do this, it will feel like you have no idea what you're doing in shapes 3-4. That's normal. Three weeks of daily practice and it'll be natural.

Where this leads

Once the five shapes connect, you stop playing "shapes" and start playing the scale. You think melodies, not positions. That is the transition to advanced playing. It takes months.

For now: just play the shapes. The pattern recognition will follow.

Next: the Mixolydian mode. One more note added to pentatonic, a whole new sound.

All five pentatonic shapes (the whole neck)

How the shapes overlap

The 12-bar blues challenge

Where this leads

Practice this lesson now