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Chord and Fret
Instrument
GuitarElectric guitarCavaquinhoUkulele

Major blues (C)

It's the major pentatonic — five bright, upbeat notes — with a passing minor 3rd, in other words a note that doesn't ask to stay: it just slides on its way to the major 3rd right next door. That meeting of minor and major 3rd is the heart of the blues language, giving the sound a smile with a melancholy wink. A useful twist: these are exactly the same notes as the minor blues scale, started from a different point — the same relationship a major key shares with its relative minor.

Example: C – D – Eb – E – G – AFormula: 1 – 2 – b3 – 3 – 5 – 6

In the formula, the numbers are degrees — positions counted in the reference major scale; "b" lowers a half step and "#" raises one.

Family: Blues scales.

The simultaneous or alternating minor and major third is fundamental to the language. Expression, bends and micro-tuning weigh as much as the collection of notes.

The same scale on all four instruments

Scale diagramHorizontal fretboard with 6 strings, frets 0–4.123435612b335612b335
Guitar
Scale diagramHorizontal fretboard with 6 strings, frets 0–4.123435612b335612b335
Electric guitar
Scale diagramHorizontal fretboard with 4 strings, frets 0–4.12342b335612b32b33
Cavaquinho
Scale diagramHorizontal fretboard with 4 strings, frets 0–5.1234556112b33356612
Ukulele

In the diagrams, each dot carries its scale degree — 1 is the tonic, highlighted.

One box per instrument is just the doorway into major blues. In Chord and Fret, you press play and watch each note light up on the diagram the instant it sounds; walk the scale's positions along the whole neck; and run it up, down or in a full round trip. Start free. Unlock everything with Pro. Plays offline. Open in Chord and Fret →

See the full scales guide →