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Alex Skolnick Explores The Major Pentatonic Scale: by Vinnie Demasi

Alex Skolnick discusses exploring the five shapes of the major pentatonic scale. He advocates viewing them from a relative major perspective to develop melodic lines and vocabulary beyond standard root position. Skolnick demonstrates how triads are contained within each shape that can be used to generate licks, runs and phrases, such as a C major triad in the A minor pentatonic shape played on the top four strings. He provides examples of melodic lines and arpeggiated runs for each shape to utilize the embedded triads in a musical way.

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Manuel Alejandro Rodriguez Madrigal
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613 views7 pages

Alex Skolnick Explores The Major Pentatonic Scale: by Vinnie Demasi

Alex Skolnick discusses exploring the five shapes of the major pentatonic scale. He advocates viewing them from a relative major perspective to develop melodic lines and vocabulary beyond standard root position. Skolnick demonstrates how triads are contained within each shape that can be used to generate licks, runs and phrases, such as a C major triad in the A minor pentatonic shape played on the top four strings. He provides examples of melodic lines and arpeggiated runs for each shape to utilize the embedded triads in a musical way.

Uploaded by

Manuel Alejandro Rodriguez Madrigal
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

AlexSkolnickExplorestheMajorPentatonicScale

BYVINNIEDEMASI

April10,2014

Asfarasjazzcatsgo,AlexSkolnickisquitetherarebreed.Verywell
respectedinboththemetalandjazzcommunities,hefirstearnedhis
stripesasateenagetitanwithBayAreathrashstalwartsTestamentinthe
late80s.Shortlythereafter,flirtationwithbookssuchasNicolas
SlonimskysThesaurusofScalesandMelodicPatterns

andMick
Goodricks TheAdvancingGuitaristinspiredhimtoleavethebandand
pursueadegreeattheNewSchoolUniversity.Whileanundergrad,he
formedtheAlexSkolnickTrio,andreleasedGoodbyetoRomance:
StandardsforaNewGeneration

in2002,agroundbreakingprojectthat
integratedjazzandmetalvocabularyinanimprovisationaltriosetting.
Sincethen,Skolnickhasgracefullynavigatedbetweenseeminglydisparate

musicrealms,releasingseveralmorejazzrecordings,touringwiththe
TransSiberianOrchestra,reunitingandtravelingtheglobewith
Testament,andcurrentlyputtingthefinishingtouchesonan
ArtistSharefundedworldmusicprojectcalledPlanetaryCoalition
(www.planetarycoalition.com).Anavidwriteranddeepthinker,Skolnick
hasalsorecentlypublishedhisautobiography

GeektoGuitarHero,a
thoughtprovokingchronicleofhislifethroughmusic.Theprofessorof
jazzmetalrecentlytooktimeforanarticulate,cerebralchatwithGP.

Oneoftheenduringchallengesforguitaristsistobecomefluentin
allfivepentatonicscaleshapes,hesays.Itsonethingto
memorizethescales,buttoreallydevelopavocabularyoflicks
outsidethestandardrootonthesixthstringform,Ifindthatit
helpstoviewthemfromarelativemajorperspective.Tothatend,
SkolnickregardstheApentatonicminorshapethatstartsonthe3
(C)inFig.AasarootpositionCpentatonicmajorscale.

Fig.A

Fig.B

Fig.C

Fig.D

ContainedwithinthenotesonthetopfourstingsisEx.1asCmajortriad.

Ex.1aEx.1b

Byfocusingonthesenotesandembellishingthemwithavarietyofbends,
slides,hammerons,andpulloffs,wecandeveloplineslikeEx.1bthat
haveastrongCmajormelodicism.

Whenworkingoutlines,youllalwayswanttobenduptoscaletones,sothe
Aonthe10thfretofthesecondstringinEx.1ctravelsafull
stepandahalftoC.

Ex.1c

Nowletsjourneythroughtheremainingscaleformsandunearth
thetriadswithin.OnthebottomthreestringsoftheCpentatonic
majorformshowninFig.B,lurkstheC/EtriaddelineatedinEx.
2a.Ifindthisgripergonomicallysuitedforlickswithhammerons,
pulloffs,andaHendrixstylechordalstab,(asdemonstratedby
Ex.2b.)

Ex.2aEx.2b

Youcanthenswitchyourfocustothetopthreestringsofthescaleandgrab
theopenDshapedC/GofEx.2c.Trypullingofftothelowernoteinthe
scaleoneachstringtogetatasty,countryflavoredrunlikeEx.2d.

Ex.2cEx.2d

PlaythroughthenextscalarshapeshowninFig.C,andnoticehow
theprevioustriadcanberepurposedasEx.3astwelfthposition

C/Echordarpeggio.Explorethescalarnotesabovethistime,and
digEx.3baveryDavidGilmouresquemelodicphrase.

Ex.3aEx.3b

ForthefinalscaleformshowninFig.D,welldropdownanoctave
tosecondposition.HeadsupthisscalehasEx.4asfull
fifthstringrootCmajorbarrechordcontainedwithin.Take
advantageofthisfacttocultivatesweeping,arpeggiosbasedruns
likeEx.4b.

Ex.4a

Ex.4b

Theresawholeworldofmusicinsideeachofthepentatonicscaleshapes,
saysSkolnick.Youjusthavetotakethetimetoexploreit.

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