GuitarManac

E minor pentatonic scale

Notes in the scaleTap one to hear it and find it on the neck

  1. 1
  2. ♭3
  3. 4
  4. 5
  5. ♭7
Key
CC♯DE♭EFF♯GG♯AB♭B
Scale

Every E minor pentatonic note on the neck.

3579121517EGABDEGABDEGABDEGABDEGABDEGABDEGABDEGABDEGABDEGA
E minor pentatonic scale guide

The E minor pentatonic scale

The minor pentatonic is the most used soloing scale on guitar. Its five notes fit in simple two-notes-per-string boxes, and it works over minor chords and over blues and rock progressions in the same key.

Its relative major is G major pentatonic, which uses the same notes starting from G.

Notes
E G A B D
Formula
1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7
Steps
W+H W W W+H W
W is two frets, H is one fret

E minor pentatonic scale positions

Five boxes cover the whole neck. Each one fits under your hand without shifting. They overlap: the top of one box is the bottom of the next.

  1. 3579121517EGBDGADEABEG

    Position 1

    Open strings to fret 3. Starts on E, the root, on the lowest string. Learn this one first.
  2. 3579121517GADEABEGBDGA

    Position 2

    Frets 2 to 5. Starts on G, the ♭3, on the lowest string.
  3. 3579121517ABEGBDGADEAB

    Position 3

    Frets 4 to 8. Starts on A, the 4, on the lowest string.
  4. 3579121517BDGADEABEGBD

    Position 4

    Frets 7 to 10. Starts on B, the 5, on the lowest string.
  5. 3579121517DEABEGBDGADE

    Position 5

    Frets 9 to 12. Starts on D, the ♭7, on the lowest string.

Chords in E minor

The E minor pentatonic scale works over the chords of E minor.