STRINGSCALES

C whole tone pentatonic Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: E, Gb, Ab, Bb, C, E at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12

A string: Bb, C, E, Gb, Ab at frets 1, 3, 7, 9, 11

D string: E, Gb, Ab, Bb, C at frets 2, 4, 6, 8, 10

G string: Ab, Bb, C, E, Gb at frets 1, 3, 5, 9, 11

B string: C, E, Gb, Ab, Bb at frets 1, 5, 7, 9, 11

High E string: E, Gb, Ab, Bb, C, E at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12

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C whole tone pentatonic

The whole tone pentatonic extracts five notes from whole tone territory: root, major 3rd, flat 5th, flat 6th, flat 7th. Everything above the 3rd is drawn from the augmented and dominant-altered world, so it floats without resolving, useful over augmented triads and 7#5 chords or for impressionist, dreamlike passages.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

C

I

E

III

G♭

bV

A♭

bVI

B♭

bVII

whole tone pentatonic in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Five notes, no anchor: root, III, b5 (Gb), b6 (Ab), b7 (Bb) float over augmented and 7#5 sounds without one wasted note.
  • Use it as a compressed altered color: over a dominant chord on C, b5 (Gb) and b6 (Ab) read as #11 and b13.
  • The major 3rd (E) is the only sweetness in the set; phrase toward it when the line needs a landing.
  • Try it against a plain minor chord a major 3rd below C for a polytonal shimmer that resolves by dropping one fret.

How to play C whole tone pentatonic on guitar

Box 1 starts at fret 8 on the low E, so the shape sits mid-neck where string bending has room. Only the two E strings ring in key. Both of them give the major third rather than the root, which means an open drone colours the line instead of grounding it. Roots also fall at 3 on the A, 5 on the G and 1 on the B. Nothing in the box passes 12, so one hand placement covers all five notes.

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