About the A Minor Pentatonic scale
A Minor Pentatonic is used for rock, blues, pop and riff-based music of every kind. Think of it as the five-note minor scale, the first scale most guitarists ever learn. It is A Blues Minor Pentatonic with the sixth lowered.
Its notes are A, C, D, E, and G. The formula is 1½ W W 1½ W. It is the fifth mode of C Major Pentatonic.
Also called Blues Pentatonic and Yu.
Four open-string notes belong to A Minor Pentatonic, namely E, A, D, and G. A guitarist finds the lowest A on the open A string. The first three frets carry a complete octave of the scale, a genuine open-position shape.
Positions
Playable shapes for this scale up the neck. Tap any note to hear it.
Pentatonic boxes
The five shapes blues and rock are built on, the first scale most guitarists ever solo with, one box per note up the neck.
Notes and intervals
| 1 | AA | Root |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | CC | Minor 3rd |
| 3 | DD | Perfect 4th |
| 4 | EE | Perfect 5th |
| 5 | GG | Minor 7th |
| Steps | 1½ W W 1½ W |
|---|---|
| Semitones | 3-2-2-3-2 |
| Degrees | 1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7 |
Shapes
Chromatic
Circle of Fifths
Related scales
Minor Pentatonic in other keys
Modes
The same notes, starting on a different note.
Embed this scale
