In this tutorial you will learn to visualize and play the major scale in the multiple patterns and positions it forms on the guitar fretboard. All my Scale Patterns (where possible) have 17 notes (3 notes on each string, except for one string which will have only 2 notes). Just like the major scale, the natural minor scale is one of the essential scales used on the guitar, and in time it will become an important part of your lead guitar arsenal. The Major Scale: Pattern 3. LESSON; We're starting here with Pattern 3 of The Five pattern system that fits around the C Shape barre chord. Whatever note you put that on becomes the name of the scale. As a result, each pattern covers a span of four to five frets, which most guitarists find very manageable to finger and play. Once you are comfortable with it, play “Back Up Track in A Major” and improvise over it using pattern 3. Once you learn the major scale patterns, you can play them in many different ways — applying the best pattern for the situation or by changing keys while maintaining a pattern. Guitar players break up the fretboard several ways — for example, as five major scale patterns, as seven major scale patterns, as two notes per string, or as three notes per string. Now, I’m sure you already know that the 1st note in G major starts with a G note. This is fairly straight forward. As its name implies, it only uses ˜ve tones. In total, there are 12 major scales and 5 fingering patterns, which gives you a lot of options and a lot to practice. Plus, it sounds great! The five C-A-G-E-D scale shapes (C shape, A shape, G shape, E shape and D shape) surround the entire fretboard. Again, the key is determined by the first and last notes of the scale, so if you were asked to play a C major scale on the guitar, you would simply start scale on the eighth fret. It's a nice pattern that feels easy under the fingers and one I find really useful. Backing track play alongs are included for practice. They are the best resource to help you develop crucial guitar playing skills. A "scale pattern" for guitar is a way to play a given scale in an efficient (with minimal distance between notes) manner from a given position on the neck. The good ol' Wikipedia has lots of well presented technical information on the Major Scale too. //