Active Melody

Learn to play blues guitar.

This 4 note scale pattern can change the way you improvise lead guitar! Guitar Lesson – EP549

Description

In this week’s guitar lesson, you’ll learn a 4 note scale pattern that we will be applying to the minor pentatonic scale to create a cascading sound when playing between notes.

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Comments

    • James S says

      Brian. Great lessons all round, however, an observation: when you demonstrate the fingering of 549 and other lesson you use 4 fingers including the pinky but when you play the lesson you revert to mainly 3 fingers. For visual learners it is hard to practice and develop the pattern fingering memory. If you would show the pattern fingering AND play it using the pattern fingering muscle memory would be enhanced. Thanks. Your taking a new player forward each lesson.

  2. Mark W says

    I just love these type of lessons. What a way to start the New Year. Simple concept but with lots of support material to build my improvising skills. Thank you Brian for a wonderful year of lessons. I get so much from each week and it just keeps me going to a new level of enthusiasm for guitar. Wishing you and all the other Active Melody followers a Happy New Year. I live in South Australia so think I will be celebrating before you. Cheers Mark.

  5. Peter R says

    This really is a great exercise and I find having the patterns in screen very useful as a quick reference/reminder. I think this lesson is also a great one to add to the foundation cources. I noticed in general that exercises like this that are somewhat melodic help me to remember and connect them faster than by learning them separately. I can imagine that is probably true for more people. A Happy New Year to you, family and the Active melody community.

  6. Andrew A says

    This is a great lesson for my finger dexterity and getting personal with all five of the pentatonic “positions”(, and how to use them). The amount of material in this one(and many others, I might say) is so helpful and practical.
    Thanks for the creativity and all the energy you put into lesson after lesson. It’s amazing and inspiring.
    All the best in the New Year ,
    Andrew

  8. Mark P says

    Hey Brian
    Another terrific lesson! I’m really impressed with this one! Great for muscle memory too.
    Happy New Year’s to you and everyone here… all the best for 2024 from Cornwall, UK!

  9. Jeff H says

    Another very useful lesson, I love these type of simple concept lessons. Thanks Brian for all the great lessons throughout the year, you have kept us inspired and entertained. Wishing you and your Family, and everyone in the Active Melody community a Happy and Safe New Year…. all the best from Melbourne, Australia.

  11. Daniel H says

    Brian, thank you for alternating the intensity of lessons. I am still trying to wrap my fingers and mind around the Blue Grass licks lesson (EP548) so getting a narrow drill based lesson like this week gives me room to focus on both. Thank you for another great year of lessons. You continue ti inspire my playing and keep me motivated!

  14. Bill W says

    Happy New Year everyone!
    Brian, thank you for a year of learning, ideas and pure enjoyment. Over the years, I have tried several learning methods, but you have taught me more this year than I ever would have imagined. I love the style, explanations and jam tracks. Thank you!

  19. Mark H says

    Good one Brian, thank you. Helps to break up ascending & descending scale runs into more musically interesting phrases.

    Bears careful study for beginners and intermediate players like me. Added to my collections.

  28. Ned N says

    Thanks Brian for another great lesson. Suggestion would be to target the major 3rd and 5th before resolving to the one note when in major pentatonic and target the minor 3rd and 5th before resolving to the one note in minor pentatonic scale. Might make things more melodic as you track across the scale position.

  30. Raymond W says

    Great Lesson Brian, you actually use this pattern in one of my favorite lessons from 2022, EP487 where you finish the solo with this 4 note pattern (in the key of A I think). I still go back to that lesson from time to time when I want to work on my speed but this lesson may be my new go to when I have the need for speed.

  33. Todd B says

    Great lesson! One of the first things I learned was similar , but used the major scale. Also Griff Hamlin put out a video on the 4 note solo pattern, which garnered a couple of million views. It was great when I first started. Play 12 bar solos with only the first and second strings of position 2, of the minor pentatonic. That being said nothing I’ve found comes close to Active Melody in the sheer amount of vital lessons, that will take you as far as you want to go as a guitar player.

  41. eric n says

    Brian, thanks again for this great channel of yours.
    It’s great to come up with some challenges like this one, the January one. No competing involved just trying to improve somewhat and that’s mighty fine.
    I’ll do what I can for this upcoming challenge and see what comes up. Not easy but I’ll give it a shot for sure, see if I can get somewhere. Rome or Nashville weren’t built in a day, right??

    Have fun.

    Cheerio,
    Eric

  43. Geoff says

    Thanks Brian for another great lesson. I am late coming in to commenting on this one because I have to actually do the lesson before I can figure out it’s merits for me.

    I have always known the position 1 and position 2 patterns and the other’s I did using my ear when improvising. This lessons has been brilliant in helping me nail down those other 3 positions and, hopefully, I won’t have to guess them going forwards.

    The only thing I am not clear on is how to figure out what key one is playing the other positions in ? With position 1 it is very clear because it is just the note on the top string. Position 2, I can deduce easily from position 1. Position 3, 4 and 5 however it is not quite so clear how to figure out what key I am playing them in. So, if I want to play position 4 in in the key of F#, for example, how would I know where to play it. The only way I know how to do it find the F# on the third string and work it in from there – there does not appear to be an easy rule for those.

    Geoff.

  44. Sean M says

    Hi Brian, on this lesson (549) why did you use the minor pentatonic scale when the key is in G major? Just trying to understand when to choose the correct scale format around the Key a song is in.

    Thx,
    Sean

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