Chord Colors

C♯ Major b6 Pentatonic scale

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About the C sharp Major b6 Pentatonic scale

C sharp Major b6 Pentatonic is used for jazz and film music that wants a bittersweet major. Think of it as a major pentatonic darkened with a flat sixth.

Its notes are C, D, E, G, and A. The formula is W W 1½ H 4 semitones.

An unfretted guitar already sounds A from this mode. The lowest C on a standard-tuned guitar sits at the 4th fret of the A string. With a capo at the first fret, C Major 6 Pentatonic can be played with C-shape fingerings.

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.

Box 1fr 1
Box 2fr 4
Box 3fr 5
Box 4fr 9
Box 5fr 11

Notes and intervals

1C#C♯Root
2D#D♯Major 2nd
3E#E♯Major 3rd
4G#G♯Perfect 5th
5AAMinor 6th
StepsW W 1½ H 4 semitones
Semitones2-2-3-1-4
Degrees1 2 3 5 6

Shapes

Chromatic

CC♯D♭DD♯E♭EFF♯G♭GG♯A♭AA♯B♭B

Circle of Fifths

CGDAEBF♯G♭C♯D♭G♯A♭D♯E♭A♯B♭F

Related scales

Major b6 Pentatonic in other keys

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Db Major b6 Pentatonic scale on guitar shown as colored note dots
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