Ok, so I was thinking the other day and I was like " Hey, what if I changed the root of x scale to a string other than the 6th string then switch back to the scale (same scale but with root in 6th string ) and back and forth between the scales to give it some variety".
Ok so does anyone actually do this ? I assume I can do this cause I'm playing in the same scale ( and I can also just change scales as the chord progression goes ) but does it actually change the sound or is it the same ?
Oh and can I change between the Major and Minor Pentatonic scales of the same key in a song ? <--- I'm guessing that would sound weird right ?
I wanna be that guy that you wish you were ! ( i wish I were that guy)
You gotta set your sights high to get high!
Everyone is a teacher when you are looking to learn.
( wise stuff man! )
Its Kirby....
Well, you can do whatever you want....
But if I'm reading you right, let's say you're in the key of A. One fingering of a 6th string root scale would go:
-----------------
-----------------
---------------2-
---------2-4-6---
---2-4-5---------
-5---------------
and a 5th string root scale would go:
-----------------
-----------------
-------------1-2-
-------0-2-4-----
-0-2-4-----------
-----------------
the thing is, those two fingerings produce exactly the same pitches. So I'm not sure where 'variety' comes from!
And yes, you can switch between the major and minor pentatonics in the same key. It doesn't have to sound weird - how it sounds depends on what you do with it.
Guitar teacher offering lessons in Plainfield IL
OK lets say I'm in the Key of C right so a 6th string, well you know how it goes :P.
And a 5th root string woul start in the 3rd fret 5th string and would move about like the 6th string one, just starting at the 5th string 3rd fret. Then I could move on to th 8th fret in the same 5th string and it would be just like if I started the scale in the 6th string, but I like the sound of the 5th string better o.o. And the same notes sound different on different strings so Instead of playing over and over down in the 8th fret ( and so on ) I can switch it up between doing stuff up in the 5th root scale and going down ( or up o.o ) to the 6th root scale.
OR will it sound the same wherever I play it ?
I wanna be that guy that you wish you were ! ( i wish I were that guy)
You gotta set your sights high to get high!
Everyone is a teacher when you are looking to learn.
( wise stuff man! )
Its Kirby....
but does it actually change the sound or is it the same ?
Hi,
My take on this is that, yes, it can sound slightly different but often not enough to make much difference unless you make a significant change in position. I doubt if I could hear any real variety between the two patterns in Noteboat's example. But if I play an E on the 9th fret of the G string then - even with my ear - it does sound different to me than the open high E string does. It's being played on a string of different length and thickness, furthermore one is plain and one is wound, and their positions in relation to the soundhole is different. So although the pitch is the same... If I've counted right... :wink: ) the timbre (type of sound) certainly isn't. The way the note dies off is different too.
I did actually use that a couple of weeks ago. I was writing a melody line that repeated and I was experimenting with having it end on the same note, but played in different spots, because I liked the variety it gave.
However, that's probably all so much waffle. My guess is that the reason for choosing one scale pattern over another would be purely practical. For instance if there's a note played on an open string in one pattern then that will restrict my options. It would be hard to do a bend, vibrato or slide up if I hadn't even got a finger on the string in the first place.... :?
I also sometimes like to do runs all the way up a single string, rather than work across. People have said "why are you doing that - you can find all the same notes in an easy to reach cluster across several strings - isn't that more efficient?". Well, yes and no.... it depends what I'm after. I like the sound of a melody running up a single string (at least I'm able to kid myself that I can hear a difference) but I also like the feel of doing it that way. If something feels right to me then it does make a change to the zing that I put into it, and that changes another aspect of the result.
Maybe I just imagine these things.... but, hey, a big part of music for me is about creating moods and fantasies, so it's all good.... :)
Cheers,
Chris
Another point...
Even if you don't find much usable sound difference, I think that the very fact that it's occurred to you to experiment and that you've spend a bunch of time looking into it, is a great sign. That self generated curiosity, enthusiasm, and desire to find out for yourself will help make the journey a lot more interesting, and will help keep you wanting to see what's round the next bend in the road when others have faltered.
And who knows what you might find?? :)
Good hunting.
Chris
