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Guitar scale

Eb major pentatonic scale (D# major pentatonic)

The Eb major pentatonic scale is the major scale with the two notes that clash removed, leaving five notes that almost never sound wrong. Best for country, pop and classic-rock solos.

By Chiye · Updated · Counts from the 80 song sheets on openguitarchords.com

Root
Eb
Notes
EbFGBbC
Formula
W-W-m3-W-m3
Relative key
C major pentatonic
Learning path
Step 3 of 5
123456789101112131415EADGBeFGBbCEbFGBbCEbFGBbCEbFGBbCEbFGBbCEbFGBbCEbFGBbCFGBbCEbFG
All 15 frets, high e string on top. Orange marks an Eb root, the box is the one position to start with, and fret 0 is an open string.
Print or save the Eb major pentatonic chart
Eb major 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 Eb major pentatonic scale is the five notes Eb, F, G, Bb and C. Read as scale degrees from Eb, that is 1, 2, 3, 5, 6. Every note is a fixed distance from the one before it: W-W-m3-W-m3, 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 major pentatonic scale. Having only five notes, it fits a narrow set of chords: any triad built entirely from Eb, F, G, Bb and C 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 Eb sits at fret 1 on the D string. 3 of the 80 song sheets charted here are in Eb / Cm.

Start here: one Eb major pentatonic position

Every note of the scale inside frets 1 to 5 sits in the box highlighted on the full neck above. The diagram below is that box on its own, numbered in the order to play it. Learn this one box first; the rest of the neck is the same shape repeated.

Play the box in this order

12345EADGBeFGBbCCEbFG12345
Numbers 1 to 5 are the playing order, one note at a time. Letters are the other Eb major pentatonic notes in this position; orange letters are roots.

Eb 1 → F 2 → G 3 → Bb 5 → C 6

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

Every Eb on the neck

low Efret 11
Afret 6
Dfret 1
Gfret 8
Bfret 4
high Efret 11

What notes are in the Eb major pentatonic scale?

  1. Eb1Root
  2. W
  3. F2Major 2nd
  4. W
  5. G3Major 3rd
  6. m3
  7. Bb5Perfect 5th
  8. W
  9. C6Major 6th
  10. m3
  11. Eb1octave

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 major pentatonic scale.

This scale is the Eb major scale with Ab and D taken out, which is why it is so hard to play a wrong note in it. Every position you already know from Eb major still works here.

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

Chords that fit the Eb major 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.

Csus410 uses hereCm9 uses hereCm74 uses hereEb1 uses hereEbsus2no uses yetEb6no uses yet

How to practise the Eb major pentatonic scale

  1. Frets 1 to 5, 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 Eb: A string, fret 6. Build the same shape from there and play root to root at 60 BPM, one note per beat.
  3. Then stop counting. Pick a song in Eb / Cm from the list below and improvise on these notes for two minutes. That is what the scale is for.

Songs in Eb / Cm on this site

3 of the 80 song sheets charted here are in Eb / Cm. Play this scale over any of them and every note lands inside the key.

EbThe GamblerKenny RogersEbYou're BeautifulJames BluntCmMy Funny ValentineRichard RodgersAllEvery song sheet

Eb major pentatonic scale: common questions

What notes are in the Eb major pentatonic scale?
The Eb major pentatonic scale is Eb, F, G, Bb and C. Counting from the root Eb, the degrees are 1, 2, 3, 5, 6.
What is the formula for the Eb major pentatonic scale?
The step pattern is W-W-m3-W-m3. Read left to right from Eb: whole step (2 frets), then whole step (2 frets), then minor 3rd (3 frets), then whole step (2 frets), then minor 3rd (3 frets). Apply the same pattern from any other note and you get that note's major pentatonic scale.
What chords work with the Eb major pentatonic scale?
Any chord built only from these notes: Eb, F, G, Bb and C. The chords that fit are Csus4, Cm, Cm7 and Eb, and Csus4 is the one this site's library uses most, 10 times. Every note of the scale is a safe landing note over any of them.
How is the Eb major pentatonic scale related to the Eb pentatonic scales?
The Eb blues scale is the Eb minor pentatonic with the flat 5th (Bb) added. The pentatonics work the other way: Eb major pentatonic takes Ab and D out of Eb major, leaving five notes that are hard to play wrong.
What is the easiest fingering for the Eb major pentatonic scale?
The position above starts on the D string at fret 1 and stays inside frets 1 to 5: Eb at fret 1 on the D, then F at fret 3 on the D, then G at fret 5 on the D, then Bb at fret 3 on the G, then C at fret 5 on the G. Everything else on the neck is the same notes repeated in other positions.
How do I practise the Eb major pentatonic scale?
Play the position in frets 1 to 5 up and back, naming every note out loud. When the shape is automatic, build the same shape from the next Eb up the neck, at fret 6 on the A string, and only then add a metronome at 60 BPM.

More Eb scales

Eb majorEb natural minorEb minor pentatonicEb blues

This scale in other keys

C major pentatonicC# major pentatonicD major pentatonicE major pentatonicF major pentatonicF# major pentatonicG major pentatonicAb major pentatonicAll 60 scale charts
Previous keyEb natural minorNext keyEb minor pentatonic