Most of us are familiar with playing Pentatonic scales. Those are the scales I’m always talking about here on the blog and they are primarily the first scales most often introduced to beginners.
Why? Well they have fewer notes then a Diatonic scale and are usually used in most pop/rock lead guitar pieces.
The difference between a diatonic and pentatonic scale is the number of notes used. A diatonic scale adds in two notes that are skipped in the pentatonic bringing the note count to all 7 notes from the scale rather then the 5 or “penta” notes used in the pentatonic scale.
When you’re trying to become a faster guitar player it’s worth learning and practicing both forms of these scales. I think they add a different dimension to your playing and they also strengthen your understanding of the notes on the fretboard.
I found a good video by Jonathan over at Guitartipsweekly.com that explains the Am Diatonic scale. You can watch it below and it should clear up a bit more of the possible confusion that exists between the Pentatonic and Diatonic scales.
He’s used some really nice images along with the video that help explain what he’s trying to teach in this quick video lesson.
December 17th, 2009 at 5:06 pm
Hey that’s me!
Just to add a bit – the difference between the scales is that the pentatonic minor scale leaves out the 2nd and the 6th notes that are in the diatonic scale.
Cheers