Klarinet Archive - Posting 000211.txt from 1997/07

From: Ryan Lowe <ryan@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: Pentatonic Scale
Date: Mon, 7 Jul 1997 15:44:26 -0400

But these two forms that I asked about are the most useful to learn? I am
trying to learn *all* of my scales. So far, I can play; major, natural
minor, harmonic minor, melodic minor, blues (1,flat-3,4,flat-5,5,flat-7,8),
"pentatonic major" (the form that I asked about) and "pentatonic minor". I
am well aware that there are oodles (sp?) of other scales, but in my
limited amount of time that I have each day, what would be the most useful
to practice? What do each of you practice (scale-wise) religiously every day?

Thanx,
Ryan Lowe

At 12:41 PM 7/7/97 -0500, you wrote:
>On Mon, 7 Jul 1997, Ryan Lowe wrote:
>
>> Could somebody please tell me the form of pentatonic major and pentatonic
>> minor scales? I had them written down....somewhere. When I looked in my
>> little musical dictionary, the definition did not help at all. TIA
>
>As someone else has already replied to you, the pentatonic scale, or major
>pentatonic as many jazz players and teachers have begun to call it, has
>the notes (in the key of C), C, D, E, G, A. The interval structure is:
>M2, M2, m3, M2, m3. You can get the same structure in the key of F# major
>by playing all the black keys on the piano keyboard.
>
>The term "minor pentatonic" is actually something of a misnomer. Again,
>as stated in a previous message, what people usually mean when they use
>this term is (in the key of C minor), C, Eb, F, G, Bb. Here, the interval
>structure is m3, M2, M2, m3, M2. This actually is just a permutation or
>rotation of the Eb pentatonic scale. Notice that it contains Eb, F, G,
>Bb, C, which is the scale which has the major pentatonic structure built
>on the note Eb. So, we can say that the minor pentatonic scale is just
>the same as the major pentatonic scale based a minor third higher than the
>tonic of the minor key or chord. So, the A minor pentatonic would be C,
>D, E, G, A, just as in C major, but starting on the A: A, C, D, E, G.
>
>There are actually are dozens or hundreds of other possible pentatonic
>scales, so it would be a little misleading to imply that the so-called
>major and minor pentatonics are the only ones.
>
>Ed Lacy
>el2@-----.edu
>
>
>