‘When both octaves are combined and one additional note is added above the highest root note, the position is completed. Memorize it!!! ‘This is the most commonly used position for the pentatonic scale, Sometimes it’s called a pentatonic “box” because of its two-note-per-string shape. ‘The A Minor Pentatonic “Box” + The pattern is repeated twelve frets higher. This is sometimes called the “octave position’ of the pentatonic “box,” since all of the notes are up one octave. Because the frets get smaller as you go higher on the neck, the same three fret stretch is actually much shorter. Therefore it is common to play the notes on the first and second strings with the fingering I, 3 instead of 1, 4. (Keep in mind that fingerings aren’t strict laws to be meticulously enforced. There are many exceptions and different ways to do things.) ‘The “Octave Position” You'd be amazed at how many different sounds and styles can be squeezed out of this one scale. Listen to Eddie Van Halen's and Stevie Ray Vaughan’s playing, for example. They both draw heavily from this same scale, yet they sound completely different! 3