1-5 · Fretboard Practice: E Minor Pentatonic Stack Across the Fretboard

The goal of these exercises is build speed at finding E notes on the fretboard and to get practice playing the minor pentatonic scale in different locations using the minor pentatonic stack shape.

Each exercise will combine a lick (a sequence of notes played within the stack) and a note-finding strategy. I highly encourage you to mix and match licks and note-finding strategies to create your own exercises.

The basic idea is:

1. Find an E note.
2. Visualize the minor pentatonic stack relative to it.
3. Play the lick pattern there as musically as you can.
4. Go to step 1.

Here are some sample phrase ideas:

1. Play the E root (the upper note on the middle string of the stack), play the note two frets lower, and then return to the E.
2. Start with the upper note on the upper string in the stack, then play the note two frets lower, and finally play the root (the upper note on the middle string). [In the video, I hammer on to the first note.]
3. Start with the upper note on the lowest string in the stack, then play the lower note on the middle string, and finally play the root (the upper note on the middle string). [In the video, I hammer on to the first note from the lower note on the lowest string.]
4. Start on the highest note in the stack, and play the scale descending until you reach the upper note on the lowest string (this will be the 5th note you play). Then, reverse direction and play back up to the root. [In the video, I hammer on to the first and last notes of the sequence.]

Here are some root-finding strategies:

1. Start on the highest string and play the lick on every E note. Then move down to the next string and repeat until you have reached the lowest string.
2. Start on the lowest string and play the lick on every E note. Then move up to the next string and repeat until you have reached the highest string.
3. Start at the nut and find every E note moving up the neck toward the bridge. At each root location, if your phrase fits on the fretboard, play the lick.
4. Start at the highest frets you can reach and find every E note moving down the neck toward the nut. At each root location, if your phrase fits on the fretboard, play the lick.

Exercise 1-16: If you mix and match the phrase ideas with the note-finding strategies, there are 16 exercises here, and you can extend that even further by inventing your own licks and note-finding strategies.

The hardest part of these exercises is watching out for how the stack falls across the warp. It pays to focus your attention on that!