Scale Fingerings

August 23, 2008

Filed under: Scales — M.Warnock @ 10:17 am

Hi Everyone,
  One of the hardest things to do on the guitar is find the “right” scale fingering for yourself. 
There are so many different ways to play any scale or mode that it’s really difficult to learn them
all and have them at your fingertips when you play.  Here are all of the common scale fingerings
to check out, if you like one over the other shed it out and then come back to the others later.  It’s
better to really know one fingering than to somewhat know a bunch. 

It’s really hard to write all the fingerings out in this blog so I will try to summarize each
fingering and then you can take it home and work it out on your neck.

1) Start by playing the scale with the root on the 6th, 5th, 4th and 3rd string with your index
finger playing the root and the rest of your fingers playing 3 notes per string up the scale.

2) Start by playing the scale with the root on the 6th, 5th, 4th and 3rd string with your middle
finger playing the root and the rest of your fingers filling out the scale, sometimes two,
sometimes three notes per string.

3) Start by playing the scale with the root on the 6th, 5th, 4th and 3rd string with your ring finger
playing the root and the rest of your fingers filling out the scale, sometimes two, sometimes three
notes per string.

4) Start by playing the scale with the root on the 6th, 5th, 4th, and 3rd string with your pinky
finger playing the root and the rest of your fingers filling out the scale, sometimes two,
sometimes three notes per string.

This will give you 12 fingerings for any scale or mode, four per string.  Try working with the
major scale first, then just alter a few notes to change the fingerings to fit the different modes. 
Here is a good chart on how to alter the notes of the major scale to play other scales and modes,
this way you are not learning any new material to play these other scales, just building on a
fingering you are already familiar with.
 

Major       1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1
Dorian       1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7 1
Phrygian    1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 1
Lydian       1 2 3 #4 5 6 7 1
Mixolydian 1 2 3 4 5 6 b7 1
Aeolian      1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 1
Locrian      1 b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7 1

Melodic Minor  1 2 b3 4 5 6 7 1
Second Mode   1 b2 b3 4 5 6 b7 1
Third Mode      1 2 3 #4 #5 6 7 1
Fourth Mode     1 2 3 #4 5 6 b7 1
Fifth Mode        1 2 3 4 5 b6 b7 1
Sixth Mode       1 2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7 1
Seventh Mode  1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 b7 1

Harmonic Minor   1 2 b3 4 5 b6 7 1
Second Mode      1 b2 b3 4 b5 6 b7 1
Third Mode          1 2 3 4 #5 6 7 1
Fourth Mode        1 2 b3 #4 5 6 b7 1
Fifth Mode           1 b2 3 4 5 b6 b7 1
Sixth Mode          1 #2 3 #4 5 6 7 1
Seventh Mode     1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 bb7 1

Harmonic Major  1 2 3 4 5 b6 7 1
Second Mode      1 2 b3 4 b5 6 b7 1
Third Mode         1 b2 b3 b4 5 b6 b7 1
Fourth Mode       1 2 b3 #4 5 6 7 1
Fifth Mode          1 b2 3 4 5 6 b7 1
Sixth Mode         1 #2 3 #4 #5 6 7 1
Seventh Mode     1 b2 b3 4 b5 b6 bb7 1

 In the next lesson I will discuss which chords commonly go with all of these modes. 

Enjoy!

Matt