The MAJOR Pentatonic Scale
5 Shapes, 5 Pieces of a Puzzle That Cover the Fretboard
The Pentatonic Scale has 5 Shapes that fit together like a Jigsaw Puzzle that cover the entire fretboard. Each shape shares a “wall” with the shape on either side of it. There are no empty spots on the fretboard; once you’ve got to the end of the 5 Shapes of the Pentatonic, they just start right back over again!
You might notice that this text and the diagram below are EXACTLY the same for both the Minor Pentatonic AND Major Pentatonic on this site. (Lazy or Efficient?)… That’s because both Minor Pentatonic and Major Pentatonic share the exact same 5 shapes and they fit together in exactly the same way. Very convenient! The difference will be below with the Scale Formula and how the “Numbers” lay out over each shape.
As always, beyond just learning the “Shape” of a scale, it’s incredibly important to learn where the Scale Degrees or “Numbers” of each shape are. To do this you’ll need to know the Minor Pentatonic Scale formula.
The Major Pentatonic Scale Formula
If you’re note sure how the Scale Formula for the Major Pentatonic Scale (above) works, I highly recommend reading through our Basic Theory Primer, specifically the page on The Pentatonic Scales.
Each of the 5 Shapes contains the same 5 note formula but each shape starts on a different note of the scale. In Major Pentatonic, Shape 1 actually starts with 6! So your Pinky will actually be playing the 1 aka Root in Shape 1.
After that, Shape 2 will actually start with the 1 or Root
Shape 3 starts with 2
Shape 4 Starts with 3
Shape 5 starts with 5.
This is definitely going to feel like a bit of a departure if you’ve already ingrained the minor numbers in your head, so start by memorizing the location of the 1’s first, then the 3rds, then the 5ths, then the 2nds, and finally the 6ths.
One more thing to note is that each Pentatonic Shape is a full two octaves (meaning the shape goes through the full Scale Formula twice) PLUS one extra note.
