Proggy Pentatonic! How to Use the Good Ol’ Pentatonic Scale in Cool New Ways

Proggy pentatonic! How to use the good ol’ pentatonic scale in cool new ways – YouTube

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The pentatonic scale is one of main building blocks of any guitar player’s vocabulary. From rock and jazz to funk and blues, the five-note scale crops up everywhere and is one of the first things many of us learn once we’ve got the basic chords down. But it’s very easy to get stuck in a couple of the familiar, basic pentatonic “boxes” on the fretboard, stifling creativity and limiting our ability to express ourselves.

In this short video tutorial, Elixir Strings artist Cameron Cooper shows how to use the good ol’ pentatonic in new and exciting ways, in the style of John Petrucci, Andy James etc. By moving outside of the basic boxes, employing string skipping and wide intervals, Cameron demonstrates how you can increase your vocabulary by using a scale you probably already know inside out. At speed it’s a pretty advanced lick, but the concepts can be used by intermediate players – so take it slow and enjoy incorporating it into your own solos!

Explaining why he’s a fan of Elixir Strings on his electric guitars, Cameron says, “Elixir® Strings feel great, last for months without rusting and rarely break. I would rather use them than anything else.”

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Cameron uses Elixir Strings Electric Optiweb 9-42.