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Guitar scale

A minor pentatonic scale

The A minor pentatonic scale is the first scale most guitarists solo with, and the backbone of blues, rock and metal lead playing. Best for first solos, blues and rock lead.

By Chiye · Updated · Counts from the 104 song sheets on openguitarchords.com

Root
A
Notes
ACDEG
Formula
m3-W-W-m3-W
Relative key
C major pentatonic
Learning path
Step 1 of 5
123456789101112131415EADGBeEGACDEGACDEGACDEGACDEGACDEGACDEGACDEGACDEG
All 15 frets, high e string on top. Orange marks an A root, the box is the one position to start with, and fret 0 is an open string.
Print or save the A minor pentatonic chart
A minor pentatonic scale chart: every note from fret 0 to 15 across all six strings, root notes marked in orange

940 × 230 px version of the chart above, sized for a phone screen or a printed handout. Tap the image to save it.

The A minor pentatonic scale is the five notes A, C, D, E and G. Read as scale degrees from A, that is 1, ♭3, 4, 5, ♭7. Every note is a fixed distance from the one before it: m3-W-W-m3-W, where W is a whole step (2 frets) and H is a half step (1 fret), and m3 is three frets. That pattern is the whole scale. Move it so the root lands on a different note and you are playing that key's minor pentatonic scale. Having only five notes, it fits a narrow set of chords: any triad built entirely from A, C, D, E and G sits under it without clashing. The same five notes are the C major pentatonic scale. Only the home note changes. On the guitar this is not one shape but overlapping positions: the lowest A sits at fret 0 on the A string. 20 of the 104 song sheets charted here are in Am / C.

Start here: one A minor pentatonic position

The notes inside frets 0 to 4 sit in the highlighted box above. The diagram below isolates that position and numbers the run to play. Learn this box first; other positions contain the same scale notes with different fingerings.

Play the box in this order

1234EADGBeEGACDEG12345
Numbers 1 to 5 are the playing order, one note at a time. Letters are the other A minor pentatonic notes in this position; orange letters are roots.

A 1 → C ♭3 → D 4 → E 5 → G ♭7

Plays exactly the run numbered above, one note at a time.

Every A on the neck

low Efret 5
Aopen
Dfret 7
Gfret 2
Bfret 10
high Efret 5

What notes are in the A minor pentatonic scale?

  1. A1Root
  2. m3
  3. C♭3Minor 3rd
  4. W
  5. D4Perfect 4th
  6. W
  7. E5Perfect 5th
  8. m3
  9. G♭7Minor 7th
  10. W
  11. A1octave

W whole step (2 frets), H half step (1 fret), m3 minor 3rd (3 frets). The same pattern from any other root gives that key's minor pentatonic scale.

This scale is the A natural minor scale with B and F taken out, which is why it is so hard to play a wrong note in it. Every position you already know from A natural minor still works here.

The same five notes, a different home: C major pentatonic uses exactly A, C, D, E and G. Learn one box and you already have both scales.

Chords that fit the A minor pentatonic scale

A chord fits this scale when all of its notes are already in the scale, which is a test you can run yourself rather than a style guide. Ordered by real use in the library.

C420 uses hereAm125 uses hereAm723 uses hereDsus417 uses hereC613 uses hereCadd913 uses here

How to practise the A minor pentatonic scale

  1. Frets 0 to 4, slowly. The position above, up and back, naming every note out loud. Naming is what turns a shape into a scale.
  2. Then find the next A: low E string, fret 5. Use the full neck diagram to find the scale notes around that root. Play root to root at 60 BPM, one note per beat; fingerings change when you move to a different string set.
  3. Then stop counting. Pick a song in Am / C from the list below and improvise on these notes for two minutes. That is what the scale is for.

Songs in Am / C on this site

20 of the 104 song sheets charted here are in Am / C. Play this scale over any of them and every note lands inside the key.

C500 MilesPeter, Paul and MaryCPiano ManBilly JoelCLet It BeThe BeatlesCHallelujahJeff BuckleyCImagineJohn LennonCCan't Help Falling in LoveElvis PresleyAllEvery song sheet

A minor pentatonic scale: common questions

What notes are in the A minor pentatonic scale?
The A minor pentatonic scale is A, C, D, E and G. Counting from the root A, the degrees are 1, ♭3, 4, 5, ♭7.
What is the formula for the A minor pentatonic scale?
The step pattern is m3-W-W-m3-W. Read left to right from A: minor 3rd (3 frets), then whole step (2 frets), then whole step (2 frets), then minor 3rd (3 frets), then whole step (2 frets). Apply the same pattern from any other note and you get that note's minor pentatonic scale.
What chords work with the A minor pentatonic scale?
The chords built only from A, C, D, E and G are C, Am, Am7 and Dsus4; C appears 420 times in the library. Shared scale notes can still create tension over a chord, so use its chord tones for stable phrase endings.
How is the A minor pentatonic scale related to the A pentatonic scales?
The A blues scale is the A minor pentatonic with the flat 5th (E) added. The pentatonics work the other way: A major pentatonic takes D and G# out of A major, leaving five notes that are hard to play wrong.
What is the easiest fingering for the A minor pentatonic scale?
The position above starts on the A string at fret 0 and stays inside frets 0 to 4: A at fret 0 on the A, then C at fret 3 on the A, then D at fret 0 on the D, then E at fret 2 on the D, then G at fret 0 on the G. Everything else on the neck is the same notes repeated in other positions.
How do I practise the A minor pentatonic scale?
Play frets 0 to 4 up and back, naming each note. Then locate A at fret 5 on the low E string. Use the neck diagram to learn that position, rather than copying the same grip across strings. Practise at 60 BPM.

More A scales

A majorA natural minorA major pentatonicA blues

This scale in other keys

C minor pentatonicC# minor pentatonicD minor pentatonicEb minor pentatonicE minor pentatonicF minor pentatonicF# minor pentatonicG minor pentatonicAll 60 scale charts
Previous keyA major pentatonicNext keyA blues