Resources > Lessons 8

Lesson 8

In this lesson we will look at how Guitarists use scales to create guitar solo's, but first I'm going to show you how to use the Tremolo arm on your guitar. The Tremolo arm changes the pitch of the strings. It can be used for anything from a gentle vibrato effect to a heavy metal style Dive bomb.

Example 1

Note - Gentle vibrato with tremolo arm

This is an A Minor chord strummed once then the tremolo arm gently moved in and out.

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Example 2

Note - Dip the tremolo arm 4 times

This is a C note played normally, then the tremolo arm is depressed and released four times.

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Example 3

Note - Depress the tremolo arm as far as possible

This is a Dive Bomb. Play the low E string then depress the tremolo arm as far as possible then bring it back to normal pitch.

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Last lesson we looked at the Pentatonic scale. This time we are going to learn a variation of this scale known as the Blues Pentatonic. The Blues scale is the same as the Pentatonic except it has two extra notes. Example 4 is the Pentatonic scale from Lesson 7.

Example 4 - A Minor Pentatonic

Example 5 - A Minor Blues Pentatonic

Note - Blues notes one octave apart.

This is the Blues Pentatonic scale. Notice the altered fingering for the Blues scale and the extra notes.

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Example 6

This is the A Minor Pentatonic played one octave higher on the 17th fret E string.

A Minor Blues Pentatonic Scale

One octave higher

Note - Because the scale is being played high up the fretboard use your 3rd finger for the notes on the 20th fret.

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If the same Scale is played from the 7th fret on the E string it becomes C Minor Blues Pentatonic.

Example 7 - C Minor Blues Pentatonic Scale

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Now try this guitar solo which uses the previous scales and all of the lead techniques you have learnt. The music starts in the key of A minor. The A minor Pentatonic is used to play over these chords. When the music changes to C minor the scale used for the lead licks is C minor Blues Pentatonic. At the end of the solo it's back to A minor, so you've guessed it, we're back using the A minor Pentatonic, but this time that extra note of the Blues Pentatonic is used.

Note - A Key is a group of chords. Keys differ to each other by the different chords they contain.

Note - A Lick is a melodic phrase, as opposed to a Riff which is a Rhythmic phrase.

Scale used = A Minor Pentatonic

Scale used = C Minor Blues Pentatonic

Scale used = A Minor Blues Pentatonic(Pentatonic one octave higher)

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Tip

  1. Experiment by playing Pentatonic scales over different chord progressions. Use your ear to judge where the root note of the scale should be.
  2. Use these licks in a similar way to the way I have, but play around with them, experiment with Slides, Pull-off's, Hammer-on's, Bends and the rhythm of the notes.

Setting Up Your Guitar and Amp

These are the Marshall Rock-Kit guitar and amp settings used by us for the sound file recordings that accompany this lesson.

Examples 2 and 3

All Other Examples

Solo