C♯ E F♯ G G♯ B 1 b3 4 b5 5 b7 6 boxes Box 1 at frets 9-12
The blues scale is the minor pentatonic plus one note: the flat five, or blue note, between the 4th and the 5th. Played as a passing note rather than a resting place, it gives blues and rock solos their grit. On the guitar it falls into 6 boxes, including an open position near the nut. Box 1 starts on the root, frets 9-12. The root C♯ is at fret 9 on the low E string and fret 4 on the A string.
e|-------------------------0-2-3-4-| B|---------------------0-2---------| G|-----------------0-1-------------| D|-------------2-4-----------------| A|---------2-4---------------------| E|-0-2-3-4-------------------------|
e|--------------------------------9-12-| B|---------------------------9-12------| G|-------------------9-11-12-----------| D|--------------9-11-------------------| A|------9-10-11------------------------| E|-9-12--------------------------------|
e|----------------------------------12-14-| B|----------------------------12-14-------| G|-------------------11-12-13-------------| D|-------------11-14----------------------| A|-------11-14----------------------------| E|-12-14----------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------14-15-16-| B|-------------------------------14-17----------| G|-------------------------13-16----------------| D|----------------14-16-17----------------------| A|----------14-16-------------------------------| E|-14-15-16-------------------------------------|
e|-----------------------4-7-| B|-------------------5-7-----| G|---------------4-6---------| D|---------4-5-6-------------| A|-----4-7-------------------| E|-4-7-----------------------|
e|-----------------------7-9-| B|-----------------7-8-9-----| G|-------------6-9-----------| D|---------6-9---------------| A|-----7-9-------------------| E|-7-9-----------------------|
Strings from the low E (left) to the high E (right), frets numbered on the left. Magenta dots are the root, C♯. The tab under each diagram plays the position from its lowest note to its highest; play it back down the same way.
The boxes above are slices of this map. They overlap: the highest notes of one are the lowest notes of the next, so once you know two neighbours you can slide from one to the other along a string.
6 notes: C♯ E F♯ G G♯ B. In whole (W) and half (H) steps: W+H W H H W+H W. The half steps are where the scale gets its colour.
| Note | Degree | Interval from the root | Half steps | Fret on the low E string |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C♯ | 1 | Root | 0 | 9 |
| E | b3 | Minor 3rd | 3 | 0 |
| F♯ | 4 | Perfect 4th | 5 | 2 |
| G | b5 | Diminished 5th | 6 | 3 |
| G♯ | 5 | Perfect 5th | 7 | 4 |
| B | b7 | Minor 7th | 10 | 7 |
Take a minor pentatonic box you already know and add the flat five where it falls. Slide through it, 4 to flat five to 5, instead of stopping on it.
The minor pentatonic is the same scale without the flat five. Compare the two: C♯ minor pentatonic.
Set the tempo low, play each position up and down with the button above, then try it yourself at the same speed. Raise the tempo by 4 BPM only when it is clean.
Going up: C♯, E, F♯, G, G♯, B, then C♯ an octave higher. Its formula is 1 b3 4 b5 5 b7.
Start with box 1, frets 9-12: the root C♯ is under your finger 1 on the low E string. Play two notes on each string (three where the blue note falls), from the low E to the high E, then back down. The diagrams and tabs on this page show all 6 boxes.
On the low E string at fret 9, on the A string at fret 4. Those two root notes anchor most scale positions and barre chords.
The minor pentatonic is the same scale without the flat five.
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