STRINGSCALES

D minor pentatonic Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: F, G, A, C, D at frets 1, 3, 5, 8, 10

A string: A, C, D, F, G, A at frets 0, 3, 5, 8, 10, 12

D string: D, F, G, A, C, D at frets 0, 3, 5, 7, 10, 12

G string: G, A, C, D, F, G at frets 0, 2, 5, 7, 10, 12

B string: C, D, F, G, A at frets 1, 3, 6, 8, 10

High E string: F, G, A, C, D at frets 1, 3, 5, 8, 10

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D minor pentatonic

The minor pentatonic is the most played guitar scale in existence: root, flat 3rd, 4th, 5th and flat 7th. Its five notes fit one comfortable two-notes-per-string box, which made it the backbone of blues, rock and countless classic solos. Because it omits the 2nd and 6th it works over almost any chord in a minor key, and adding the flat 5th turns it into the minor blues scale.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

D

I

F

bIII

G

IV

A

V

C

bVII

Same notes, different mode

D minor pentatonic uses the same notes as the scales below. Start from a different note and you get a new mode built on the very same note set.

F major pentatonicG egyptianA malkos ragaC ritusen

minor pentatonic in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Learn box 1 at the fret of D on the low E string first, but escape it early: slide up to box 2 on the B and E strings for higher bends.
  • The 4th (G) bent a whole step up to the 5th (A) is the single most-used bend in blues; practice hitting it in tune.
  • Rub the flat 3rd (F) against a major-key backing for blues grit, or curl it slightly sharp toward the major 3rd like the classic players.
  • Add the flat 5th (Ab) as a passing note and you have the D blues scale; use it in transit, not as a resting place.

How to play D minor pentatonic on guitar

Open D is the root itself, and open A and G add the fifth and the fourth, so three adjacent strings can ring as a drone bed under every phrase. Every note is a natural, which means the whole key reads without a single accidental. Box one sits high, at fret 10. Roots also sit at fret 5 on the A string and at fret 7 on the G string. F major pentatonic shares every fret of this layout, 3 semitones up, so major-key lines in F cost nothing extra.

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