Someone please help my soloing....

[PRS One]

I had a question on soloing. Let me create a simple setup. Let's say I pick the key of G. Then I make my riff a progression of G-C-D.
Would you make up a solo based solely on the notes in the G major scale? Or can you add notes in the key of C and D as long as it fits in the chords C and D when you play them.

And do the notes in the pentatonic scale "fit" better than the rest in the major and minor scales?

Thanks for the input guys.....

[smfulla]

well I think that what you should do, is learn the 7 modes.
And depending on whether your key is minor or major, choose different modes.
what I found is that it makes it sound in key.

[cyberfret]

Here are a few other basics ideas that you may want to think about. You could use a G major scale since all of the chords are in the key of G major. You would not want to use a C major and D major scale for the C and D chords.

When learning to improvise, and figure out what scales to use, keep these things in mind.

A chord progression will be either major sounding, or minor sounding. There are modes and different kinds of scales, but just break them into 2 different categories at first.

Pentatonic scales are the easiest to deal with at first. Understanding modes takes are little more knowledge of theory.

Play a major pentatonic scale over a major type progression
Play a minor pentatonic scale over a minor type progression

When trying to figure out whether a progression is major or minor, try to decide which chord is home base. Maybe the first or last chord of the progression, but where you feel sounds like home. If it is a major chord then you have a major type progression, if it is a minor chord then you have a minor type progression.


Last, you can play a minor pentatonic over a major type progression...if the song has a blues feel, or you can superimpose a blues feel over the song. For example the chord progression (G, Em, C, D) is a major type progression, and therefore uses a G major pentatonic scale. You can also use a G minor pentatonic if it sounds right to you (blues feel). If the same set of chord were in a ska tune, the minor pentatonic might sound awful.

Note: you can not use a major pentatonic over a minor progression, It will just sound wrong.

This is an over simplification but should give you some ideas.

You can also use different pentatonic scales for individual chords, Use a minor pentatonic scale for a minor chord and a major pentatonic for a major chord.

example:
Chord progression G Em C D G

Use G major pentatonic over the whole chord progression
Use G minor pentatonic over the whole chord progression....If it has a blues feel to it.
Use E minor pentatonic over the Em chord (the same notes as G major pentatonic)
Use a C major pentatonic over the C chord
Use a D major pentatonic over the D chord

Of course if you are switching between different pentatonic you want to stay in the same position on the neck of the guitar. So here is a lesson that not only explains the theory of pentatonic scales, but give you the fingerings covering the entire neck.

http://www.cyberfret.com/theory/pentatonic-scales/index.htm

--Shawn