The Guitar Player's Resource
Welcome back! In his lesson we are going to do some fundamental stuff that people seem to ignore that is very beneficial for your guitar playing in many ways. I will be showing you the major scales in the open position of the guitar and we will be covering the flat keys moving around the circle of fourths beginning with the key of C. Hopefully, you know how to construct a major scale and understand the circle of fourths, also known as the circle of fifths. If not, you may want to learn it and it is a great way to practice all of your scales, arpeggios and chords etc. I have done lessons on these topics before.
By playing scales this way, you really learn the notes instead of relying on just patterns. When I teach someone how to play scales, I always write out the scale in the open position, first with the formula, and then I show them the patterns. Also, the open position scales can come in handy if you want to add melodies and runs to your open position chords as well.
The scales in this lesson are laid out in the open position and it is important to play the lowest available notes of each scale in the open position. For example, in the first measure you will notice I start with the low E for the key of C and go to the highest note in that position. Once you memorize the notes in each scale, learn them all over the neck and apply them to your playing. Also playing scales this way can make a great exercise to help develop your technique and your endurance. Try to go through all of the keys without stopping and be sure to do the sharp keys in this fashion as well. I will cover more of this in future lessons.
MP3 - Flat Keys, Fast
MP3 - Flat Keys, Slow
OK, that is it for now! Don't forget to visit mikecampese.com.
Mike Campese is an all-around music performer, session artist and teacher competent in many musical styles, electric and acoustic. He has studied at G.I.T. (Honors Graduate), and with Paul Gilbert, Norman Brown, Stanley Jordan, Scott Henderson and Keith Wyatt.
