The pentatonic scale, in its simplest form, is exactly what the words tell us: a five note scale…
It’s a musical tool has been around for centuries and has been used in musical cultures around the world to create melodies, share songs, and improvise music.
And today we’ll explore how this simple 5-note template can also become an invaluable tool in your approach to improvisation.
Below we’ll review both the major and minor pentatonic scales and cover:
- Why they are a shortcut to strong chord tones
- Pentatonic scale variations to practice
- Melodic examples from the jazz repertoire
- and 3 in-depth lessons to apply pentatonic ideas in your solos
Let’s get started…
the Major Pentatonic scale
We’ll begin with the major pentatonic scale…
The Major Pentatonic Scale
The major pentatonic scale is built from the root, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 6th degrees of a major chord or scale:
Why these 5 notes specifically??
If we look at them from a theory perspective, the five notes of the major pentatonic scale are the strong chord tones of a chord: 1, 2 ,3, 5, 6
The core triad with the addition of the 9th and 6th – essentially all of the “consonant” notes over a major or dominant sound:
As an improviser, this means that we can use this scale as a tool to quickly access key chord tones and freely improvise over a chord or progression in a key…simply being able to identify these 5 notes will lead you to strong melodic choices in any key!
On the other hand, this scale omits the 4th and 7th scale degrees, the two “dissonant” chord tones in a major chord that pull to resolution and hint at V7 to I motion.
The goal is to develop both of these approaches, standard harmonic language and pentatonic techniques, in your playing…
Pentatonic scale variations
One of the interesting features within the major pentatonic scale are the naturally occurring intervals you’ll find and the related melodic shapes you can create with them.
As opposed to the stacks of major and minor 3rds you find in a major scale built on tertian harmony, the pentatonic scale utilizes a different set of notes and intervals.
Here are a few options to exploring these possibilities. Start by playing the pentatonic scale in “thirds” or skipping every other note:
Notice the sound of major 3rd along with the distinct sound of perfect 4ths. Now try the scale in 5ths, skipping two notes:
Here you’ll access the larger intervals like 5ths and 6ths within the pentatonic sound.
Moving away from the typical bebop approach of arpeggios and scale-like lines with chromaticism, you can create melodic lines with these larger intervals and cell-like units…
With these variations, the 5 notes of the scale or chord tones in a key can quickly become a fertile ground for creating endless melodic ideas and musical shapes…
the Minor pentatonic scale
Along with a major pentatonic scale, you should also know the minor pentatonic scale…
The Minor Pentatonic Scale
The minor pentatonic scale is built from the root, b3, 4, 5, and b7 of a minor chord or scale:
The minor pentatonic is directly related to the major pentatonic scale – it’s the relative minor – the same scale with a different starting point. The flip side of a major key, the relative minor can be used interchangeably with its major counterpart:
Just like the major version, the minor pentatonic scale highlights the key chord tones of a sound, revealing a framework for melodic development.
…the difference being that the 4th and 7th are “consonant” in minor.
*You can practice and apply the same scale variations we covered above to the minor pentatonic, exploring the naturally occurring intervals.
Pentatonic scale Melodies
The pentatonic scale is an ideal starting point for creating melody because it features all of the consonant chord tones of a key along with naturally occurring intervals (2nds, 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, and 6ths) that lend themselves to compelling melodic shapes.
Pentatonic scales are a quick way to locate essential chord tones in a key, an effective tool for creating melodic ideas. As a starting point, they take away the burden of finding notes to play so you can focus all of your attention on creating ideas…
In addition to the numerous examples in folk songs, popular tunes, and music around the world, there are many great examples of pentatonic material in the jazz repertoire.
Below we’ll look at a few melodies from standard tunes that utilize the pentatonic scale…
Major pentatonic melodic examlpes
We’ll begin with two melodies that utilize the Bb major pentatonic scale over chord progressions in the key of Bb. The first is Ray Noble’s classic tune Cherokee:
Rather than addressing each chord, the melody floats on top of the larger harmonic movement in Bb major, using the Bb pentatonic scale as the basis of the simple melodic line.
Another example is Duke Ellington’s composition Cotton Tail, a pentatonic melody applied to a song form like Rhythm Changes…
A way to create melodic phrases over the larger key (in this case Bb) without having to worry about every single chord or resolution.
Notice how a pentatonic approach can emphasize different chord tones than the typical triad of the major scale, in this case the 2nd (or 9th), C over Bb.
Another or in a standard like Days of Wine and Roses uses pentatonic material over a longer phrase…
The long, simple melodic line uses the notes of an F pentatonic scale, placed over typical harmonic movement in F major.
Minor pentatonic melodic examples
Here are a few examples of melodies that use the minor pentatonic scale…
Sonny Moon for Two a simple blues head that uses a repeating Bb minor pentatonic melody over the entire form:
Another tune that uses a minor pentatonic melody is Mongo Santamaria’s composition Afro Blue, notably played by the classic John Coltrane quartet:
Finally, take a listen to Wayne Shorter’s composition Deluge, which features an Eb minor pentatonic melody over harmony that shifts between Eb- and Emaj7#11:
There are many more tunes in all types of music that utilize the pentatonic scale in the melody, and once you are familiar with these 5 notes in every key, you’ll begin to recognize it everywhere…
Pentatonic scale lessons
After learning the notes and practicing the pentatonic scale in different keys and variations, the next question you might have is…
So what do I do with this scale??
How are you going to implement these ideas into the tunes you’re playing right now? Here we’re going to look at some musical applications of pentatonic scales taken from three solos…
Lesson #1: McCoy Tyner, Blues on the Corner
Building on the explorations of John Coltrane, players like Larry Young, Joe Henderson, Woody Shaw, and McCoy Tyner utilized pentatonic ideas in their compositions and solos…
In this lesson, we’ll look at how McCoy Tyner applies pentatonic concepts in his solo on “Blues on the Corner,” a 12-bar Bb blues.
Not only is he applying the related pentatonic scale to the chord, but using other pentatonic scales that highlight different chord tones to create a unique sound in his lines….
3 Secrets to Soloing with the Pentatonic Scale: A Lesson with McCoy Tyner
Lesson #2: Kenny Garrett, Ornithology
In this next lesson, we’ll look at how you can apply a pentatonic approach to a jazz standard like Ornithology.
Inside we’ll explore some of the techniques Kenny Garrett uses over common progressions and the innovative way he applies simple ideas like triads and pentatonic lines to create new sounds.
Killer Triadic & Pentatonic Lines Made Easy (PRO)
Lesson #3: Applying Pentatonics to the Blues
Finally, in this last lesson, we’ll look at how pentatonic based melodies can be used over a blues form to create phrases both inside and outside of the harmony.
Inside we’ll study not only how you can use pentatonic scales as a melodic tool, but how you can apply pentatonic ideas outside of the harmony in key transition points in the blues form:
