PENTATONIC SCALE
PENTA = five TONIC = tone -- So a pentatonic scale is a five tone scale.
A common form of the pentatonic scale consists of three whole steps and two intervals of a step and a half. Ex:
C D F
G A C
1 11/2
1 1
11/2
This scale has five forms (modes)
C D F
G A C
1 11/2
1 1
11/2
D F
G A C
D
11/2 1
1 11/2
1
F G A
C D
F
1 1
11/2 1
11/2
G A C
D F
G
1 11/2
1 11/2 1
A C D
F G
A
11/2
1 11/2
1 1
Asian Song uses the second of these modes (11/2 1 1 11/2 1), but starting on concert G and using a concert Bb in the key.
C Instruments: G Bb C D F G
Bb Instruments: A C D E G A
Eb Instruments: E G A B D E
F Instruments: D F G A C D
In concert pitch, treble clef, this scale looks like this:
(If the play bar shows below, click on it to hear the above example.)
The Pentatonic Scale is important in the musical heritage of China, India, Africa, Polynesia, Scotland & the American Indian.
Jazzers - the minor pentatonic is the scale we often use as the basis of the blues scale - it is the second mode above but in jazz we usually call it by scale numbers:
1 b3 4 5 b7 1
A pure c minor pentatonic blues scale is:
C Eb F
G Bb
C
11/2
1 1
11/2
1
To this basic pentatonic scale, we usually add the 4# or 5b, so the usual c blues scale is:
C Eb F F# G Bb C