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How important are scales?

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(@neztok)
Estimable Member
Joined: 14 years ago
Posts: 152
 

Learn the major scale and you can play many melodies off the top of your head. First go. Of course I could pick out the melodies before I knew scales. It took longer and I would hit wrong notes. There's lots of reasons for knowing scales. I've always played them musically.


   
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(@tinsmith)
Prominent Member
Joined: 19 years ago
Posts: 830
 

The only problem I have with scales, is being stuck in them....Same with modes


   
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(@anonymous)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 8184
 

music is made of scales. how important are letters? do you like music? any music at all? scales are good. they're important.


   
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(@tinsmith)
Prominent Member
Joined: 19 years ago
Posts: 830
 

music is made of scales. how important are letters? do you like music? any music at all? scales are good. they're important.
Yes they are important as the building blocks we play. I'm talking about being stuck with scales....play the whole scale.....need to break things up......my vote gets moving onto riffs from songs & songs them selves. Need to learn phasing.....
I've said enough...


   
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(@liontable)
Estimable Member
Joined: 14 years ago
Posts: 146
 

I find that very important, actually. Breaking the scales up is something I do a lot in my scale practicing. When I play something I know where the scale itself is, but that doesn't necessarily mean I will run it up and down. The only reason for doing that is creating a fluid movement, a natural one, but there's many ways to do this. Switching rhythms or using certain techniques can turn a scale into a song.

My main issue with playing is the fact I'm always improvising. Whenever I learn a new technique I incorporate it into my playing. This ends with me not knowing a lot of songs on demand, but I do learn how they're made. And that's what I feel scales are good for. Mindlessly playing them won't get you any further, but using the knowledge and the comfort you built can. I know my scales, and I got lost in doing this exact thing. Then I played randomly across my board and found some other nice notes that fit in. Played a few riffs after that and looked at what worked. Currently, I can combine those two and it leaves me a lot more secure. It's like counting beats. Knowing where the beats fall doesn't necessarily force you to play on them. It creates room to not do it.

Scales can provide a structured familiarity, instead of many small parts being strapped together. Using them, however, shouldn't be done in the strictest sense. It's still music, but scales can provide a structured approach to familiarizing and building.


   
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