Scales are the core buildings blocks for any guitarist. If you want to take your skills to the next level, understanding how different scales work is essential. 

The major scale is one of the most important scales to learn, but the minor pentatonic scale follows closely behind it. If you are into blues or rock, the minor pentatonic scale is especially good one to master. 

So, what are the most important things to know about the minor pentatonic scale? 

The Scale Formula 

Minor pentatonic scale is actually a simple scale to learn. The big difference to the other common scales is that the pentatonic scales only have five notes instead of the usual seven. 

The minor pentatonic scale formula is most used in blues and rock music. For example, bands like Led Zeppelin and the Foo Fighters often use this scale in their songs. As an example, you could take a listen to Led Zeppelin’s classic Stairway To Heaven song. 

The scale formula describes the interval distances between each note of the scale. You can use the formula for building the chord keys and such. 

In the above scale, T stands for tone (whole step), S stands for semitone (half step) and TS stands for tone + semitone (minor 3^rd interval). 

The numbers represent the note you play. 

That means C minor pentatonic scale would look like this: 

 f you look at the C minor scale and the scale formula, you can see how the changes happen. For example, the scale goes from C to the minor 3^rd interval to Eb, then a whole step to F and another whole step to G, and so on. 

If you know the first note, you’ll know the rest of the notes with the formula in mind. 

Breaking the Rules 

With the above in mind, it must be said the minor pentatonic scale is a bit of a rule breaker. This is mostly down to the scale’s use in blues music, with blues being quite a groundbreaking genre itself. 

The chords available within the minor pentatonic scale don’t always follow the above rules. The changes available for you are called the following: 

·         Power chords – the chords are used with a root note in the scale

·         Extended power family chords – chords which commonly use the scale but are not necessarily in the actual five note scale 

The power chords and the extended power family chords are the most common in blues context. The chords in C minor pentatonic scale would look like this: 

Practicing Tips 

The minor pentatonic scale puts your finger skills to the test. There isn’t any ‘right’ way to fingering the scale, so keep trying what works the best for you. 

The key is to keep practicing quite a lot until you can play the scale by heart. This will take some time and you need to keep at it. 

Just like with many guitar techniques, you want to start with a slow tempo and keep pushing yourself to play faster as you progress. 

The key minor pentatonic scales to learn are the five most common positions. These positions come from the CAGED-system. You can view the position from the below image:

The minor pentatonic scale will provide you with amazing tools to creating cool guitar solos. It is especially handy scale to learn if you are a looking to play rock or blues. 

Just stay patient with your practice and find ways to apply what you’ve learned into real songs and solos. This will help you remember the scale quicker.