Guitar scale · pentatonic & blues
Bb Major Pentatonic Scale
Sweet 5-note major scale used for uplifting melodies in country, southern rock, and acoustic pop.
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How to play Bb Major Pentatonic on guitar
Find the root first: Bb is at fret 6 on the low E string and fret 1 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every Bb on the neck; the gold ones are the other chord tones (3rd, 5th and 7th), which are the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.
Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 6–9. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.
Bb major pentatonic has the same five notes as G minor pentatonic, so the same box shapes work for both. See the G Minor Pentatonic Scale.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | Bb |
| 2 | C |
| 3 | D |
| 5 | F |
| 6 | G |
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Questions
- What notes are in the Bb Major Pentatonic Scale?
- The Bb Major Pentatonic Scale has 5 notes: Bb, C, D, F, G.
- What is the formula of the major pentatonic scale?
- 1 2 3 5 6, which is the step pattern W W W+H W W+H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play Bb Major Pentatonic on the guitar?
- The root Bb is at fret 6 on the low E string and fret 1 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 6–9, and four more positions connect it up the neck.