Guitar scales

Scale - a specific series of notes

C major scale

One formula will build all major scales. That formula is:

W W H W W W H

whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half

The piano is such a great visual instrument we will use it occasionally to help with music theory. Notice there is no black key between B to C and between E to F.

C major scale on 5th string (A string)

Now lets take a look at applying this theory to the guitar. There are a number of ways we could play this C major scale from above on the fretboard but for now lets look at applying it to one string (Our A string/5th string)

So we will use the W W H W W W H formula to build a C major scale

Guitar fretboard showing C major scale on the A string

Note that the Half steps fall between E and F and B and C. The key of C major is the only time we will see this happen.

Start on C (3rd fret of A string)
Whole (W) step to D (5th fret)
Whole (W) step to E (7th fret)
Half (H) step to F (8th fret)
Whole (W) to G (10th fret)
Whole (W) to A (12th fret)
Whole (W) to B (14th fret)
Half (H) to C (15th fret)

C major scale on 2nd string (B String)

Now let's build a major scale on another string. This time we will use our 2nd string (B string). Notice that the C that starts this scale (third space of the staff) is the same C that ended the scale above. So that means that we have two places to play that same C. We actually have two other places we could play it too. But more on that later 🙂

Guitar fretboard showing C major scale on B string.

C major scale in 1st position

Playing a scale on one string is a great way to visually see the scale as far as W W H W W W H however it is not the most efficient way to play a scale.

So now we look at playing C major in 1st position.

C major scale in 1st position on fretboard

Note D, G and B are open strings.

The fretboard below is another way to see the notes. This is actually a more common way of viewing the fretboard and will be used most often in other lessons on the site.

This video is going to be redone very soon and I will add a jam track or two to practice playing your scale along with.

Free 3 Part Series on Scales

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Do you know there are really only 5 scale forms that will cover the whole fretboard?

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My name is Teague Purtell and I am a professional musician. I love music and I love sharing my knowledge so others can experience the joy that playing guitar can offer. I started Musiclearning.Com in 1999 with the goal to create fun online guitar lessons that provided direction and would help with focus and consistency. Over time it became a complete guitar method designed to help everyone from beginner to seasoned players. In 2007 I started a youtube channel and began adding videos to the lessons. Little did I know that my lesson videos would get to 26 million views and counting. All this to say I have figured out how to teach guitar online and what works for people so they feel they make the progress needed to want to keep playing and growing on the instrument.

Guitar Scales