D♯ F♯ G♯ A A♯ C♯ 1 b3 4 b5 5 b7 5 boxes Box 1 at frets 11-14
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 5 boxes. Box 1 starts on the root, frets 11-14. The root D♯ is at fret 11 on the low E string and fret 6 on the A string.
e|-------------------------------------11-14-| B|-------------------------------11-14-------| G|----------------------11-13-14-------------| D|----------------11-13----------------------| A|-------11-12-13----------------------------| E|-11-14-------------------------------------|
e|----------------------------------14-16-| B|----------------------------14-16-------| G|-------------------13-14-15-------------| D|-------------13-16----------------------| A|-------13-16----------------------------| E|-14-16----------------------------------|
e|-------------------------4-5-6-| B|---------------------4-7-------| G|-----------------3-6-----------| D|-----------4-6-7---------------| A|-------4-6---------------------| E|-4-5-6-------------------------|
e|-----------------------6-9-| B|-------------------7-9-----| G|---------------6-8---------| D|---------6-7-8-------------| A|-----6-9-------------------| E|-6-9-----------------------|
e|-----------------------------9-11-| B|---------------------9-10-11------| G|----------------8-11--------------| D|-----------8-11-------------------| A|------9-11------------------------| E|-9-11-----------------------------|
Strings from the low E (left) to the high E (right), frets numbered on the left. Magenta dots are the root, D♯. 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: D♯ F♯ G♯ A A♯ C♯. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| D♯ | 1 | Root | 0 | 11 |
| F♯ | b3 | Minor 3rd | 3 | 2 |
| G♯ | 4 | Perfect 4th | 5 | 4 |
| A | b5 | Diminished 5th | 6 | 5 |
| A♯ | 5 | Perfect 5th | 7 | 6 |
| C♯ | b7 | Minor 7th | 10 | 9 |
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: D♯ 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: D♯, F♯, G♯, A, A♯, C♯, then D♯ an octave higher. Its formula is 1 b3 4 b5 5 b7.
Start with box 1, frets 11-14: the root D♯ 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 5 boxes.
On the low E string at fret 11, on the A string at fret 6. 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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