PENTATONIC POSSIBILITIES: What Is The Best Scale For Your Solo, Major or Minor?

[@cassl7001]

this dude is an underrated ‘youtube musician’

[@shyamc.s9872]

100%

[@jamescurtis8584]

Dang man your ability to relay information is incredible. I really love your channel bc it's informative without being condescending, it's visually educational and bc it's genuinely entertaining. Please don't stop creating good stuff for us.

[@JYelton]

Incredibly helpful. Seriously, your comparisons and explanations are extremely well done. Thanks _so_ much!

[@SignalsMusicStudio]

Thanks Jared!

[@anegene1]

.wow Jake your lessons really is the best ever of all lesson i been watching in youtube for many years ...wow God Bless you men

[@SuvradipDasPhotographyOfficial]

This is the best channel for guitar players, music composers and theories which no one ever explains

[@sashanicholson880]

Jake! You good sir are an inspiration to hundreds of thousands. I know you get a zillion glowing comments like this, but I just gotta say: I never felt confident that I could write music. Then I discovered your channel and it's not an exaggeration to say it's changed my life. And beyond the creative inspiration your videos provide, without fail they re-energize me whenever I'm discouraged or frustrated. Thank you so much for all you do for us!

[@maxfoth2]

same here, i've tried noodling around a bit when i was younger but none of it made sense, and then i started trying to learn again during covid after watching one of his videos and this stuff just made sense

[@ckjjclan]

Brilliant... I rely LOVE the "in context" demonstrations with PREPARED background tracks (not just a quick loop pedal backing)... it helps me hear what you are saying in a context I'm wanting to play in... thank you for taking the time to put this out there!

[@kenyoung5049]

Best channel on KZbin. You demonstrate a rare combination of skills. Born of the 90s grunge scene, I never paid much attention to theory until picking my guitar back up after having gone 10 years without playing. If I'd have had access to these priceless classes, I probably would never have put the axe down to begin with! You are making the world a better place by helping to give it better guitar players. Thank you, sincerely

[@armanpgrigorian]

I literally just watched the country video where you mentioned the clashing of major/minor thirds and I love how you tie in ideas from other videos. Quality content brother 🤘🏻

[@RC32Smiths01]

The Pentatonic Scale may be so limiting, but I think that's a part of its charm; it's incredible and versatile in any genre, and can sound so amazing with the right tones. Awesome work man

[@TheRosswise]

And if you remember that you can always add the missing notes back in to spice things up, it doesn't feel that limiting anymore.

[@RC32Smiths01]

@@TheRosswise Ahh I understand that man. Very well indeed

[@bouzoukiman5000]

TheRosswise also remember. Pentatonic does not have to be played blues style and can be played side to side on just one or two strings, like all modes can

[@JunkYour925]

I agree it’s why I round out using chord tone soloing as well. You know both and you are unstoppable. I think Kirk Lorange is the best for learning it. You can improve easily on key changes and chords that fall outside the key.

[@Okraknife]

@@TheRosswise agreed, it's perfect with string bends and microtonal nuances. But, by the time you do all that, it's not really a pentatonic scale anymore, lol.

[@divineheretic82]

Of all the music lessons on KZbin, hands down this dude is the easiest to understand without getting completely overwhelmed. I’ve been playing bass/guitar for 20+ years. However just a few select videos of this guy and I feel like I’ve learned more on from these videos than everything I’ve learned on my own/from friends.

[@TheJabernet]

"Choose, but choose wisely" LOL, that says it all Brother.

[@magedabulsouod1958]

Greetings from Egypt Jake! I just can't emphasize enough on how much you've made a difference in my guitar playing, THANK YOU for doing these AWESOME videos, you always find a way to help me out with the difficulties I'm facing with acoustics and music theory. So much love headed your way!

[@bradenglass4753]

You're English is amazing, do you speak anything other than Egyptian Arabic and English?

[@solaristologist]

I wish i could afford to be your patron Jake , your videos have filled in huge gaps in my knowledge and gotten me on a way better path to creating my own music, and for my wife too when i inevitably regurgitate a videos content during practice. Its really awesome stuff mate! This content is absolutely 24k solid gold

[@rome8180]

Thank you for talking about "bad solo territory." I hear so many solos by "great" guitarists that are basically just fast noodling on the minor pentatonic. They don't show any understanding of how to play over chord changes. It's like they learned how to solo on one scale and never progressed beyond that.

[@marendenison3550]

I loved the improv! Such a good player and teacher. Your examples helped me pinpoint what some of my favorite bands sound like.

[@MrZachalewel]

I remember when you only had 26k subs. Amazing job Jake!

[@SignalsMusicStudio]

glad you're still here! I remember those days like they were yesterday... it was only 2.5 yrs ago that i had zero subscribers so this still all feels new to me lol.

[@danielmp-007]

Only 26k subs??? Well, I guess if you compare it to 301k subs it is a great achievement. Yes! Great job well done Jake👍

[@moistness482]

Hi Jake and everyone else, hope you have a good day 🙂

[@michaeltellurian825]

There were a couple of times there when you were mixing the two and it sounded like Clapton and Santana, and it occurred to me that you were explaining their process. Great tutorial!

[@Peter-by3ox]

Angus young is great example of how to shift between Major and Minor for soloing. Great vid, great channel thanks man !!

[@SignalsMusicStudio]

Very true! The solo for You Shook Me is a great example of playing Pentatonic Minor over a major I - IV - V to create awesome blues/rock energy, but occasionally dipping into the Major Pentatonic to brighten up specific moments. I teach that solo all the time to get students familiar with shapes and common bending licks, really a GREAT lead for any guitarist to learn.

[@larryd7196]

@@SignalsMusicStudio Great video Jake! Two songs that really opened my eyes to the major/minor mix thing was Van Halen ....Ice Cream Man and Lynyard Skynard ...Call Me The Breeze. Not the easiest for beginners, but two great solos to learn that really flips back and forth between major and minor a lot, in the perfectly appropriate places

[@Tonysmithmusic]

jimmy page also.

[@Bluesnipible]

I don't play guitar, or understand half of what you are saying in these videos, yet I watch them anyway. You make it fun to listen to something interesting and your style of playing is very pleasing to the ear. Great video!

[@DBFIU]

Best music teacher on KZbin. I've seen them all. 80% of them are just regurgitating stuff you can read online. 20% of them try but don't quite make the cut as a true teacher (lack the editing skills and experience to explain concepts) and then there's signals music studio. The one and only.

[@apollinesetan3691]

11:40 I don't know why but it made me think a lot of Shine on You Crazy Diamond. It had some of the Gilmour's vibe in that solo. Especially the bends in the end. Hahaha great video as always. Thanks for everything 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@educostanzo]

14:10 - I love the classic Shpongle-ish flavor of that progression, so psychedelic.

[@Guitarplayer724]

That major pentatonic playing is definitely Allman Brothers “ish” and throw in some Marshall Tucker too! Great video Jake!

[@georgemasonsghost4062]

First thing I thought of, too!

[@kenlee5015]

I noticed that also.

[@JJPivotProductions2]

More people should know about your channel. Your videos on modes have been really eye opening for me and you ability to explain things clearly and concisely with a solid pace is a lost art these days. The way you show clear examples with visuals and go on jams with comparisons to specific artists and soundscapes truly helps put the pieces together. Seriously, keep up the awesome work man. I look out for new videos and consider you the best resource on youtube.

[@gilregev4823]

in Dorian: it sounds better if you play iimin Pentatonic : 2 4 5 6 1in that case you get the characteristic 6In Phrygian : try to play bviimin Pentatonic : b7 b2 b3 4 b6in that case you get the b2

[@nvdawahyaify]

Hi Jake, I actually loved the sound of the major scale over the minor chord. Perhaps the reason why minor scales work over major chords to our ears is because we have heard it for our whole lives so we're used to it, but we are not used to it in the other direction, so our ears don't immediately like it. I think if it had been done for over 100 years we may think it works just fine.

[@shutstart]

Best music theory guide ever!!. You provide a lot of information for free and I have nothing but absolute respect for you ! Thank you for making such quality videos

[@Andrew-kg9yo]

I love your videos because you don’t just teach the concepts, but you also show how to apply them. This makes the concepts stick better, as well as improves my guitar playing.

[@coltonaallen]

Man, when you bend the strings, you make it look so easy like they're 6 gauge it something! Thanks for the vid, Jake!

[@EclecticEssentric]

Land your fingers slightly more on the fretboard than string (compared to hitting a note normal), under the string, yet pressing it down. Then use multiple fingers to bend it. If you hit the string normal and then bend, you're just gonna hurt your finger tips. Get under it (at least on the highest strings). Practice bending just 1 note for a day until you grok it and the notes that resound with it, then learn another bend. Good luck! (Typo edit).

[@coltonaallen]

@@EclecticEssentric this is a really great explanation! Thank you! Will try this. I particularly like the "get under it" part

[@ParaBellum2024]

What string gauges do you use, Arthur? If you're using thicker ones, try 9-42 (e.g. Ernie Ball Super Slinky). Also, don't be fooled by the video: assuming the strat has a floating trem, string bends will have to go further to achieve the same pitch shift (as the trem springs stretch a little), making it appear easy. With a fixed bridge, he wouldn't have to push the string so far. Is your bridge fixed or floating?

[@jedi774]

One of the best music educators I’ve ever had the pleasure of learning from.

[@mortv5985]

Your electric guitar tone reminds of that of Santana. Great video as always.

[@derrickmelton5844]

Your major pentatonic over the minor chord can work as a sort of call and response type of action, since the major sound over the minor evokes this sort of mocking feeling. So a single bar of major over minor has its place if you set it up properly...it is just a matter of creating appropriate surrounding context so that the out of place sound it creates sounds intentionally out of place...which is typically the case with things that sound wrong in music; a simple matter of not using the right tool for the surrounding context.

[@krystledawne]

I was hung up on the relative minor aspect of the pentatonic shapes when I started. I’m sure you have other videos discussing that and it would be a great next step for someone.

[@Carlos-fh8wk]

Your sound engineer in the back with the glasses is the best “straight man” in the business. You make music make sense BTW.

[@louisesterhuizen7850]

They say.that those who can -DO, and those who can't- TEACH. But sometimes youre fortunate to find someone who can do both. Thanks for a great educational.and inspirational video!!

[@joshuawilliams4158]

Thank you so much for this video man. I've been playing for 21 years, I'm self-taught so I don't know a lot of the book smarts, but I can fluently improvise in both pentatonics and I've wondered for years WHY they didn't work sometimes. Music theory makes sense in my head, so I knew that certain chord progressions needed a different version of the pentatonic in the appropriate time, but it drove me crazy not understanding the "why" of it. This just helped make a lot of things click for me so thank you, brother!

[@robertellis8561]

Informative without being overwhelming.... authoritative without being pompous... entertaining without being trivial.

[@thiagoskapata]

Another possibility is changing the pentatonic according to the chord. This is possible because the pentatonic of all chords are included in the harmonic field. An example: C major scale C - C D E G A Dm - D F G A C Em - E G A B D F - F G A C D G - G A B D E Am - A C D E G For B°, we can use the scale I guess it's name is half diminished pentatonic.

[@timothyclay3668]

Amazing how you casually throw in information which is just super useful. Love your videos!!

[@glennsamberg1973]

Jake, I have studied several of your lessons on music theory and I want to say that over time you are really improving in all aspects. Your music is really becoming enjoyable.

[@ericschwartz9982]

Great lesson as always. Another fun thing to do over a Maj 7 chord is to play a minor pentatonic based on the major third of the chord. For example, over a CM7 play an E minor pentatonic scale. Pleasing to the ear too.

[@superfaqer]

I have only watched 4 videos from you, and i gotta say, bloody awesome! You teach music theory super interestingly and best part, you show it in the context of my current tastes of music as well. Which helps me tremendously 🤘🏾🤘🏾🤘🏾

[@superfaqer]

Ans you're a guitarist as well. Super plus

[@vincentborrowdale3093]

BEEN WATCHING FOR TWO DAYS NOW ,QUARANTINE HAS ITS ADVANTAGES. HE TEARS THINGS DOWN TO HELP YOU BUILD THEM UP GREAT TEACHER/PLAYER.

[@tomhannay2889]

I don't get why you don't have 5mil subs like your channel is honestly one of the most useful channels out there

[@jasonbos2007]

All your videos are so good. Amazingly good at describing and elaborating in ways that are easy to digest. I watch and rewatch your videos when I hit ruts in my guitar playing (which happens plenty often)

[@dougarnold7955]

7:06...I like it when you make yourself go into Pent minor... Good stuff. Thanks.

[@teamyordle23]

I've always wondered why I couldn't solo on a minor chord progression with a major scale when I started playing guitar 6 years ago. Now I know why, wow. It was so simple.

[@ChrisMuellerMusic]

Jake, this was - as always - very good. Thank you!

[@massincreasing833]

When you switched from major to minor around 9:30 it sounded amazing. Great vid!

[@TheRosswise]

I always played minor pentatonic when the song is in minor and major pentatonic when the song is in major, in the respective key. It always sounds amazing to my ears.

[@guitaristssuck8979]

You don't say!

[@robnic52]

I really like your videos, so clear and informative. Thanks it's helping me loads with my playing. I have one tiny request: When you play examples of a 'bad' choice of scale for soloing you tend to jump straight into the lead without allowing the chords to play for a while and set the musical scene. You don't do this when illustrating a nicer choice, then you give us a good long lead-in. For us semi-clueless beginners its hard to hear quite how and where the solo clashes with the chords without first letting us hear how the backing track sounds. Thanks again for a terrific set of videos.

[@MarkRoskoGuitar]

You can convert any minor pentatonic lick into its major version by shifting the riff 3 fretts down. Likewise you can convert any major pentatonic (or major scale) to into minor by shifting the riff 3 fretts up. The try it 😉

[@ultrahighgain412]

Or you can just keep the same position root note and use what would be the second position minor pentatonic shape. Same thing, just a different way of envisioning it.

[@moistness482]

15:55 Wait a minute, since phrygian dominant is a mode based on a dominant tonic, then maybe pentatonic minor could also provide kind of a more exotic spin to a blues sound. I haven't tried it, but who knows.

[@moka8267]

11:37 reminded me of Pink Floyd's 'More Blues'

[@duniagiana]

Great video, as always... really useful stuff for me :)

[@gerardmichael8523]

Great video. I mostly write and major keys but I love throwing a quick minor pentatonic run in a solo before resolving back to major

[@lifeishealinghealthwellnes1979]

Great presentation and clarity on how to use both modes. A game changer for me. Thanks!!

[@anthonyzbikowski529]

Thank You! Excellent and extremely timely video. Just in time as a matter of fact for my improv homework from my instructor on noodling over a blues backing track... except I am doing it on a violin/viola. D Major stuff sounds like early 90's hair metal ballad territory.

[@mrstrypes]

6:28 "He chose...poorly." (Body rots and desentigrates within seconds.) LOL! Tells Saint Peter, "Maybe I should have watched Jake's lessons a little more before attempting to solo only in E pentatonic minor over a song that was clearly in E major."

[@mrstrypes]

10:59 Oh, my gosh! You used that part from "The Last Crusade" too. Laughing very loudly! (Kids think I'm fun...wife thinks I'm crazy.")

[@timeforpudding6338]

By far one of the most useful guitar videos I've ever watched. Holy cow. Thanks.

[@roadogsc]

One thing I notice when playing minor pentatonic over a minor chord, and I even noticed this when he played it, it sounds a bit flat and not as epic when playing minor over major. Is there a better scale to play over a minor chord that gives some presence?

[@carltaylor4942]

Try mixing the minor pentatonic with the full minor scale. Try using harmonic and/or melodic minor.

[@Krieghandt]

@@carltaylor4942 You can always build your own scale, pick notes that add the feelings your looking for (about 5 of them) and tear it up. If you do enough music theory, you will realise that every note can be played with every scale, depending on what you it to do. If it sounds good, it is good. Corollary: if it sounds like crap . . .

[@carltaylor4942]

@@Krieghandt - Yeah, totally agree. I was just suggesting a couple of standard ideas for adding a bit more colour to the minor pentatonic.

[@BLACKxZ3RO]

Sliding start points can be effective

[@jamaass]

You can add the blue note and a major 7th (from the harmonic minor) sometimes. Also you can make a little bend on the 3rd, like half semitone. What i like to do sometimes is to think of the pentatonic as the "main scale", and use the chromatic scale for weaker notes (so you dont rest on them). Obviously, its way more risky. Slash does it on "I used to love her" for example, with 4 chromatic notes.

[@GuitarisGreat1]

This lesson was really helpful. thank you. the zoom in on the fretboard at the beginning was really helpful to see those techniques

[@cleverdood]

Awesome lesson, just started going through this with my guitar teacher, this helped make it click.

[@notoriouswhitemoth]

I... honestly really like the sound of those examples of major-scale improvising over minor chords. To me, they sound almost defiant, like the phoenix rising from its ashes. I mean I definitely wouldn't use that for a whole piece, but for a short passage that's supposed to sound like standing up to overwhelming odds, I'm all over that

[@jjcabrera20]

Super this rounds up most of my beginner theory course. Concise and very good explanation. You rule Jake. Huge Fan!

[@JunkYour925]

Awesome explanation. No longer a mystery. Great improv. That #4 mix always sounds great as a climax ending. Reminds me of a particular song and I can’t place it. Before you played I heard it in my head.

[@Shineysideup1]

Excellent instructor and easy to understand. You have a gift.

[@z-em4612]

Just when i started make a song with lot of pentatonic to learn to use it properly, Jake post a video about pentatonic scale! You're awesome!

[@z-em4612]

OMG i just tested pentatonic minor over my over-major track and it's sound amazing! Thanks a lot Jake you inspiration God

[@beckst3r]

Best parts of vid, change my mind: 1:45 1:59 2:58 9:00 9:31 12:01 12:32

[@jacobryan365]

I'm so gladI found your channel. All your videos are very informative and I've actually been able to expand my tool box thanks to you.

[@tomas-wi8dy]

8:20 minor D pentatonic it is so beautiful - you say is bad choise - but I love it, but it's me

[@FluffyIFue]

Thank you, after I have watched some of your videos I finally get to complete my songs and make more emotional lyrics like I want to, keep it up please, it helps alot!!

[@nightly522]

hands down best video on this topic. you are a fantastic teacher!

[@_k12ist]

What have you done guy? Solved mysteries in my mind again and again! Like your videos so much. Thanks for being a great teacher to me.

[@BigSh00tsie]

Slow clap for that incredible strat bridge pickup tone.

[@cybershadow58]

Fantastic info video! Great style of info and demo for a Non-Theory user (me)-- I do drumming, percussion and didjeridoo, i never studied Music Theory but I SO do love your channel! Nice Work and Thanks!

[@DonyaLane]

I never thought of the minor blues notes as modal against the Major chords, but wow, you're right. That's a revelation to me! It's as if my ears just got a good cleaning. Also, I really enjoyed your solos!

[@Top40Theory]

Awesome video as always, Jake. I really envy your ability to be so engaging and clear no matter what the topic is.

[@ADJ1.1]

Well done. Great video. Been looking for a video like this for ages. Really helpful 👍

[@kartikxramesh]

4:29 "I'm hesitant to say that music can be wrong.. but that's just wrong!" ded

[@zeyy84]

Jazz: Am I a joke to you?

[@friedcash9815]

@@zeyy84 lolol

[@SamC_182]

I actually thought it sounded alright

[@malexmartinez4007]

It sounded better to me. 😭

[@benediktschwarzacher3572]

Thank you for making things clearer!

[@gushutchinson8758]

Exc ellent presentation..your understanding seems endless...very deep. I'm truly in at the deep end.

[@HamHavoc]

Straight forward. No bs. This channel is great!

[@kevinking2468]

Thanks Jake - just learned more from this 1 lesson than anything else in the past 20 years - Thankyou!!!

[@timdentry9754]

Your instruction on musical theory is stellar!

[@robinmartini7968]

And another excellent contribution from one of my favourite You Tubers. As usual so clearly explained and expertly demonstrated. I'm looking forward to the next! :-)

[@billyvitale8994]

Great job...ine of the most concise and practical tutorial on this subject matter I have seen yet. Thank you...really ty so much

[@AaronRotenberg]

Great stuff! I would love to see a follow-up video covering the circumstances where the other 3 modes of the pentatonic scale work well. I don't see those modes talked about as much but they're certainly widely used.

[@burningcell]

Damn!!! Just ... DAMN!!!! This absolutely rocked my brain!! This is seriously helpful and insightful, gonna go over this many many times, thank you so much for this awesome and useful content!!

[@notyourpapa]

Thank you for the clear examples with the explanation. It really helps to understand.

[@davidlegalley1161]

Thanks Jake! Very clear explanations with examples; most helpful 👍🏽👍🏻

[@dimasmayda8021]

Thank you again bro! I'm having a GREAT time with your videos! Really fantastic! I'm following the lessons with my piano, and it's just flows as good as with the guitar :)

[@doxyl4269]

Great video. I think you've been doing a great job in making videos that slot really well into that intermediate stage of instrument learning (where I'm at) where you just need lots of ideas and ways to experiment with contextual examples. KZbin can be a bit of a dry zone for structured teaching that hits that niche so well.

[@andystovermusic9200]

Love your videos jake. You have a natural way of helps us take in the information so well. I don’t know it just kinda sticks 😊

[@fenderbender23]

Loving the videos on your channel! I noticed you make use of a really nice triplet picking pattern (examples at 2:58 and 9:31) in your soloing. Maybe you could make a quick video on your picking technique and your strategy for rapidly selecting notes for those triplets while improvising?

[@amirranjbar1995]

Jake you're the best music teacher on youtube, keep helping us become legends haha

[@stevehall760]

First class instructional videos, and incredibly good dialogue . Keep it up

[@binface9]

Thanks for this video. It's the first step toward me not making characteristic poor choices when improvising.

[@ze-ce.cra_]

In Yngwie's case it would be "harmonic minor or diminished?" Also Jonny Greenwood : *what's a scale?*