A major pentatonic scale

A major pentatonic scale uses the notes A, B, C♯, E and F♯. Counted from A, its formula is 1 2 3 5 6, and the distance between neighbouring notes follows the pattern W W W+H W W+H.

Notes, formula and steps

Read from the root, the A major pentatonic scale contains root (A), major 2nd (B), major 3rd (C♯), perfect 5th (E) and major 6th (F♯). The step pattern W W W+H W W+H (W = whole step, H = half step, W+H = a step and a half) is the same for every major pentatonic scale, so you can rebuild it from any note. This scale has 2 sharps: C♯ and F♯.

How to play the A major pentatonic scale on piano

Start on A and play A, B, C♯, E and F♯ going up, then come back down. Say the note names out loud while you play: it links the sound, the keys and the names. Practise hands separately first, slowly with the metronome, then speed up.

How to play the A major pentatonic scale on guitar

On guitar, the root A sits at fret 5 on the low E string and fret 0 on the A string. Start from one of these roots and play the notes of the fretboard map above in order, one string after another. The whole-neck view shows every place the A major pentatonic scale appears, so you can connect the positions instead of staying in one box.

Chords in the A major pentatonic scale

With only 5 notes, this scale does not produce a chord on every degree. It fits naturally over A, Asus2, Aadd9, A6 and F♯m, which is why it is so popular for improvising.

Relative and parallel scales

The A major pentatonic scale shares its notes with the F sharp minor pentatonic scale: same notes, different starting point and a different mood. Its parallel scale, on the same root, is the A natural minor scale. Switching between them is a classic way to change colour without changing key.

About the major pentatonic scale

Five notes, no semitones: bright, open, singable and almost impossible to make sound wrong. Without the 4th and the 7th, the two notes that create tension in the major scale, it floats over the chords of a major key without clashing. It is the sound of country licks, folk melodies, soul riffs and big pop choruses.

Play it over major chords and major-key progressions: I IV V, I V vi IV, or a whole country or rock song in a major key. Over a single major chord it sounds sweet and melodic. In a major-key blues, mixing it with the minor pentatonic on the same root gives the classic vocabulary of B.B. King and southern rock.

On guitar it uses the same five box shapes as the minor pentatonic of its relative minor, starting from a different root (for example C major pentatonic uses the A minor pentatonic shapes). Find the major root in each box and end phrases there. On piano, the black keys alone form the G♭ major pentatonic: a perfect playground.

Formula 1 2 3 5 6, steps W W W+H W W+H. The major pentatonic is the major scale without its 4th and 7th, and it has the same notes as the minor pentatonic built on its 6th degree (for example C major and A minor pentatonic). It can also be built as a chain of perfect fifths: C G D A E.

Related

• F sharp minor pentatonic scale
• A natural minor scale
• A major scale
• A minor pentatonic scale
• A blues scale
• A Dorian mode
• A Mixolydian mode
• A harmonic minor scale
• A
• Asus2
• Aadd9

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