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Archives for September 2020

Effective One-Octave Major Scales and Why! Part I

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October 4, 2020 by Klaus Crow

When you learn your first scales you usually start with two-octave scales, because they span all six strings of the guitar. You play from the Low E-string all the way up to the high e-string.

That’s great! It’s important you learn the two-octave scales inside out, but one-octave scales have their own effective purpose that will serve your playing in a different and complementary way.

Why You Want to Learn One Octave Scales

One of the reasons you want to learn one-octave scales is because of their simplicity. By using only one octave it’s easier to see the shape and structure of the scale, the notes within the scale, and the intervals. The scale is more user-friendly, easier to play, memorize and apply around the fretboard.

There’s another great benefit to learning one-octave scales. Once you got them under your fingers it’s only a matter of connecting the dots to lay out two octave and three-octave scales, since they are made up of one-octave scales.

Note: This post is part of a small series where you will learn one-octave major scale shapes across the entire guitar neck that will help you understand and own the major scale landscape.

Starting from the Root Note on the Low E-string

Today we’re learning three major scale shape/patterns with the first (root) note starting on the Low E-string (6th string).

Tip: For this lesson learn and memorize the notes on the low E-string so you know and recognize the key of the scale when you want to move the scale up or down the fretboard.

Major Scale Fingering

For the major scale examples and tablature below I’ve notated the left hand fingering (for right handed players). The numbers next to the notes on the note staff right above the tablature indicates the left hand fingers:

1 = index
2 = middle finger
3 = ring finger
4 = pinky

The numbers in the yellow neck diagrams also indicate the fingers. The neck diagrams also clearly show what the shape or pattern looks like. Learn to visualize and memorize the shape of each pattern.

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How to Simplify Your Guitar Process

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September 1, 2023 by Klaus Crow

Sometimes the hardest part of practicing is starting. It’s the “thought” of having to practice that gets in the way, not practicing itself. Feelings of resistance arise and you trying to justify the art of not practicing translates in words like “I am too busy”, “I am too tired”, or “it’s too late” or “it’s too much now” and the list goes on and on.

We say there are more important things that have to be done before we can play guitar, but isn’t that always the case. There is always something more important, something more urgent, but in reality it’s nothing more than an excuse of the mind. There is time, if you want it.

EASY TIME TO PRACTICE

If you really think about it, there is 5 minutes of time to steal in every corner of the day, and 5 minutes of practice add up over time. There are 5 minutes before breakfast, 5 minutes during lunch or 5 minutes after dinner. 5 minutes before you go to school or just 5 minutes after you come back home from work.

You can also cut out the trivial stuff in your life and practice instead. What about 5 minutes less Netflix and 5 minutes less checking your email, Whatsapp or Instagram. You could wake up 5 minutes earlier or shorten the time you need to get the important things done.

You can surely find 5 minutes if you really care about playing guitar. Even if you have only 5 minutes a day, those 5 minutes add up over a week, over a month and over 6 months, especially if you practice with a goal and focus on the task at hand.

The only thing you have to do is stop allowing the thought that gets in the way of picking up your guitar right now. Just grab your guitar and practice.

So now we got that out of the way it’s important to make that practice process as simple and easy as possible, so you won’t have to think about that either.

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