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Do scales really help

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(@audioboy)
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Joined: 18 years ago
Posts: 187
Topic starter  

Another question, does doing scales help my speed in general, or does it only help me do the scale faster because of repition?


   
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(@steve-0)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 1162
 

I think it helps speed in general, because you learn how to make speedy and efficient finger movement.

Steve-0


   
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 Mike
(@mike)
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Joined: 20 years ago
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Theory aside....... Scales are great for building muscle memory and they REALLY help you with your over-all approach to the neck. The more you practice them, the more comfortable you get when moving around.

Another must is how the notes sound <insert theory> in the particular scale and you are applying. Really pay attention to them.


   
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(@fishrmann)
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Joined: 19 years ago
Posts: 33
 

As a beginner (1yr) I'd offer up that working on learning scales has been and continues to be well worth the effort. Not only does it help speed up note changes, coordination between right and left hands, but once you make the effort to understand scale structure and are forced into learning each note on the fretboard the rewards are well the effort.

Good luck and go for it! Scales may seem somewhat daunting at first, but they are only a series of notes that just so happen to usually sound pretty good when played together :idea:


   
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(@anonymous)
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Joined: 17 years ago
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I've always had trouble with scales. I can play solos fine but take away the rhythm, and all of the sudden I can't do it. Plus I change the tuning of my guitar and all of the sudden, the scale pattern I practiced doesn't work anymore.


   
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 Oric
(@oric)
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Joined: 18 years ago
Posts: 87
 

That's why you don't learn the scale by a set pattern, you learn by what the notes of the scale are.


   
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(@ginger)
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Joined: 18 years ago
Posts: 393
 

The question is do scales really help and the answer is YES!


   
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(@wes-inman)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5582
 

Another question, does doing scales help my speed in general, or does it only help me do the scale faster because of repition?

As far as developing technique, scales are very useful because they teach you finger independence. And you can't but help become a better picker by running up and down scales.

Speed comes in time. If you try to play faster than your ability you will be sloppy and develop bad habits. It is better to go a little slow at first and work on being precise. However you practice is the way you will play.

And it is repetition. Your mind and fingers are trained through repetition. A chord that seems difficult to fret becomes easy with repetition, scales are the same.

And I like what Mike said, pay attention to each note in the scale and how it relates to the chord you are playing over. Take note of where the Root note is, the 3rd or flatted 3rd, 5th, and 7th tones especially. But all notes have significance.

If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis


   
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(@ricola)
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Joined: 18 years ago
Posts: 177
 

Being a beginner myself, 3 months and counting, scales have really helped me learn where the notes are on the fretboard. First I learned the C major scale, and where it was on the fretboard, and what it looked like in music notation. From there I learned a few more scales, thus learning even more about where the notes are on the fretboard. From there you start to see similarities such as where the same pitched note is in different places on the fretboard. Learning the names of the notes in the scales I'm playing have really helped me see what notes are in the chords I'm playing.

All this to say scales teach you more than finger dexterity... :)

Psa. 42:8
By day the LORD commands his steadfast love,
and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.


   
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