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I had a blues teacher that showed me this and made it simple by taking a pentatonic minor scale within the scale and basically playing that pentatonic minor a minor 3rd above the dominant chord. He also derived an altered pentatonic scale of 1, b3, 4, b5, b7 a whole step below the dominant chord, and a minor 9 arpeggio a half step above the dominant chord. Made it simpler to be musical in the beginning.
That's an interesting approach and makes great sense from a blues guitar perspective, and a teaching perspective, letting you use a scale that's very basic, often the first scale guitar players learn, to create enough tensions to sound quite sophisticated. It's a really great concept, arguably the most important jazz musicians' hack, using just a couple of simple elements (a chord in one key with a scale in a different key which creates interesting tensions) that are greater than the sum of their parts, to create musical complexity just using an existing vocabulary in a different way. It's perfectly valid and might even be preferable if you don't care about referencing the root, and don't mind doing without the flat 9th, the two notes that would turn the minor pentatonic into the second mode of the jazz minor scale, or third mode of the altered dominant scale. Another name for the mode is the Dorian flat 9th scale, since the only difference between the second mode of the jazz minor scale and the second (Dorian) mode of the basic major scale is the 9th is flatted. It's got the sharp 9th, the sharp 4th, and the sharp 5th, 75% of the possibilities for adding tension to a 7th chord. I prefer the altered scale, but it's good to explore all approaches including just trying every possible minor pentatonic over the chord, since there are 11 possibilities; not all sound good, but you only know by trying them out, and it's fun to explore.
To expound on this, this is how the teacher played these concepts over a ii, V, I. PENTATONIC MINOR IDEA: For the ii chord, he would play a pentatonic minor on the 5 of the ii chord. For instance, in Am, that's an Em pentatonic which gives you the 5, b7, 1, 9, and 11. On the V chord (which would be D7), he moved the pentatonic up a half step to Fm. Over the D7, that Fm pentatonic scale gives you the #9, #11, b13, b7, and b9 (those notes come from the Eb melodic minor scale). On the I (GMaj7) chord, he would move the pentatonic up another half step and play F#m pentatonic giving you the 7, 9, 3, #11, and 13 (very tasty). Also, if you played the VI7 turnaround chord (E7 in this case, to go back to the ii chord [Am]), you could move that pentatonic up yet another half step, as it would be Gm pentatonic over the E7 (same idea and scale tones as the Fm pentatonic over the D7 noted before). ALTERED BLUES SCALE OR ALTERED PENTATONIC SCALE: I favor this as a normal thing, it's just a bit bluesier than either the blues scale or minor pentatonic scale and has been my go to for the longest time. It's essentially 1, b3, 4, b5, and b7. Played 1 whole step below the dominant chord (C altered blues scale [C, Eb, F, Gb, Bb] over a D7) gives you the b7, b9, #9, 3, and b13. So, my teacher would play an altered blues scale over the ii chord (Am chord, playing A, C, D, Eb, and G) and playing the exact same lick a minor 3rd higher (the C altered blues over the D7 I mentioned) and resolving on the I chord. Sorry for being long winded, just wanted to give a thorough explanation. Once you do it, a light bulb goes off, it's really, really simple to see and understand.
I'm pretty sure pentatonic scale can't have semitones (4 - b5). That's the point of pentatonic, it's all just major seconds and minor thirds, that's why it sounds so melodic and it's easy to use...
You are a good teacher. I actually found this very useful after watching many on alter scales, as you provide us the material into how to use it which helps get me into the sound of it and interested in progressing further
You really encouraged me to start and keep practicing reading the other day. I ordered the real book and reading a lot of music scores online. Thanks for these videos 🙏
My jazz band conductor was teaching me about using the altered scale over dominant chords just the other day! He was teaching me how to solo over the bridge of Charles Mingus’ tune Moanin’
Hey Ben, maybe I missed it but I didn't hear you speaking about a crucial element which is how do you think about it in term of chord tones you emphasize (by your examples it sound to me like you are superimposing C minor melodic minor and not thinking B alt which would mean either thinking of it as Bm7b5 or B7#5 as the tonic )
Thanks so much for watching! I address this at 7:05, where we look at the degrees of the B Altered Scale (rather than purely deriving it as a mode from C Melodic Minor), specifically highlighting the four altered tensions present in the Altered Scale. Hope that helps and thanks again 😀
There are three unique permutations of a scale that has 7 notes with two half steps. Half of the possibilities are degenerate, due to symmetries, or are covered by a mode of another if you want to think of it that way. First family is Diatonic, Second is melodic minor family, and the third is two consecutive half tones with whole tones everywhere else. 1 b2 b3 4 5 6 7. Its a whole tone scale with an extra note. Not sure if that one has a name, or if its worth knowing about. Things exist, what else can you say?
Your vocal cadence reminds me of that guy on River Monsters. There’s something possibly scary and unknown going on.. I like your lessons! Nobody answered my question about why the guitar sounds an octave lower than what’s written on the staff. Why didn’t you just use the bass clef as opposed to so many upper ledger lines. It would be perfect for reading piano music…what am I missing?
Haha River Monsters...You raise an interesting question! If the guitar was notated in treble clef at the exact same pitch as middle C on a piano (without a 1-octave displacement), it would likely create too many lower ledger lines. Similarly - if the guitar was notated only in bass clef, it would accomodate some of the lower pitches, but the vast majority of notes in the instrument's range would be forced into upper ledger lines... Perhaps guitar should be notated over both bass clef & treble clef, just like piano. It's possible that this would present a valid (if only partial) solution to the widespread reading issues experienced by guitarists - just an idea! Thanks again for watching 😎
Absolutely! Altered Scale works on almost any Dominant 7 Chord (except for maybe a 7sus4 chord - depends on the exact context). Altered Scale definitely works over the V chord in a Minor ii-V-i progression 😀
The answers can be varied, however I would say it often comes down to exactly how a chord is voiced. For example, let's take the two variations of B7#5#9 presented at 5:53 - the second voicing of this chord (played at 5:58) could certainly be classified as B7#9b13 due to the #5 (G) being voiced up the octave (and thus serving as a b13), but one could also argue that the #5 is simply being voiced as the highest voice within our B7#5#9 voicing. In my opinion, either argument is acceptable but it can also depend upon the musical context at hand. Thanks for watching 😀
You're right - based on the proper definition. This term also gets thrown around to mean 'within the scale' when referring to individual notes: For example C# is not diatonic to C major; or C# is not diatonic to B altered; C is diatonic to both C major and B altered; etc. I personally use it this way constantly. The textbook definition - of having 7 notes with 2 semitones and 5 tones with max distance between the 2 semitones (which creates a Major Scale mode) - isn't very useful to me. I just call them whatever modes they happen to be: Phrygian, Lydian, etc. It's to the point - the textbook definition is an extra step for no reason. So if it's not a major scale mode, then I call it Harmonic Minor, or Harmonic Minor III (meaning the 3rd mode of Harmonic Minor), or Melodic Minor or Melodic Minor IV (4th mode of that), etc. I call it what it is. If they have common names that people use, then I use those. So I wouldn't say Melodic Minor VII - I'd say Altered.
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I had a blues teacher that showed me this and made it simple by taking a pentatonic minor scale within the scale and basically playing that pentatonic minor a minor 3rd above the dominant chord. He also derived an altered pentatonic scale of 1, b3, 4, b5, b7 a whole step below the dominant chord, and a minor 9 arpeggio a half step above the dominant chord. Made it simpler to be musical in the beginning.
I’m going to try that now , wow
That's an interesting approach and makes great sense from a blues guitar perspective, and a teaching perspective, letting you use a scale that's very basic, often the first scale guitar players learn, to create enough tensions to sound quite sophisticated.
It's a really great concept, arguably the most important jazz musicians' hack, using just a couple of simple elements (a chord in one key with a scale in a different key which creates interesting tensions) that are greater than the sum of their parts, to create musical complexity just using an existing vocabulary in a different way.
It's perfectly valid and might even be preferable if you don't care about referencing the root, and don't mind doing without the flat 9th, the two notes that would turn the minor pentatonic into the second mode of the jazz minor scale, or third mode of the altered dominant scale.
Another name for the mode is the Dorian flat 9th scale, since the only difference between the second mode of the jazz minor scale and the second (Dorian) mode of the basic major scale is the 9th is flatted.
It's got the sharp 9th, the sharp 4th, and the sharp 5th, 75% of the possibilities for adding tension to a 7th chord.
I prefer the altered scale, but it's good to explore all approaches including just trying every possible minor pentatonic over the chord, since there are 11 possibilities; not all sound good, but you only know by trying them out, and it's fun to explore.
Thanks so much for sharing! Great approach 💯
To expound on this, this is how the teacher played these concepts over a ii, V, I.
PENTATONIC MINOR IDEA: For the ii chord, he would play a pentatonic minor on the 5 of the ii chord. For instance, in Am, that's an Em pentatonic which gives you the 5, b7, 1, 9, and 11. On the V chord (which would be D7), he moved the pentatonic up a half step to Fm. Over the D7, that Fm pentatonic scale gives you the #9, #11, b13, b7, and b9 (those notes come from the Eb melodic minor scale). On the I (GMaj7) chord, he would move the pentatonic up another half step and play F#m pentatonic giving you the 7, 9, 3, #11, and 13 (very tasty). Also, if you played the VI7 turnaround chord (E7 in this case, to go back to the ii chord [Am]), you could move that pentatonic up yet another half step, as it would be Gm pentatonic over the E7 (same idea and scale tones as the Fm pentatonic over the D7 noted before).
ALTERED BLUES SCALE OR ALTERED PENTATONIC SCALE: I favor this as a normal thing, it's just a bit bluesier than either the blues scale or minor pentatonic scale and has been my go to for the longest time. It's essentially 1, b3, 4, b5, and b7. Played 1 whole step below the dominant chord (C altered blues scale [C, Eb, F, Gb, Bb] over a D7) gives you the b7, b9, #9, 3, and b13. So, my teacher would play an altered blues scale over the ii chord (Am chord, playing A, C, D, Eb, and G) and playing the exact same lick a minor 3rd higher (the C altered blues over the D7 I mentioned) and resolving on the I chord.
Sorry for being long winded, just wanted to give a thorough explanation. Once you do it, a light bulb goes off, it's really, really simple to see and understand.
I'm pretty sure pentatonic scale can't have semitones (4 - b5). That's the point of pentatonic, it's all just major seconds and minor thirds, that's why it sounds so melodic and it's easy to use...
This is the best video I've seen on the altered scale!
So glad you liked it Andreas!
😂😂😂
Man, I love altered scales, I voted for this! Noice!!!
You voted and I made the video! 😀 Haha thanks so much for watching
You are a good teacher. I actually found this very useful after watching many on alter scales, as you provide us the material into how to use it which helps get me into the sound of it and interested in progressing further
So glad you liked it! Thanks for watching
You really encouraged me to start and keep practicing reading the other day. I ordered the real book and reading a lot of music scores online. Thanks for these videos 🙏
So glad to hear it, Dan - that's fantastic! Keep on enjoying your practice, it's a musical journey we're all on 😀
I need this scale on my bag. that's why i discover this Vid. Now I'm a new Subscriber. 🖤
Thanks so much for joining me, I hope you enjoy my videos! 😀
I have never even heard of it, so listening intently.
Thanks so much for checking this out!
What a great way to wake up -- new Ben lesson! 🎉 Cheers!
Thank you so much for checking it out, I really appreciate it! 😀
I love the sound of Altered scale. I need more exercises against chords that can be utilized in real situations
Thanks so much for watching!
Another great lesson Ben! Thanks.
Thanks so much for watching, David!
Great Ben!! THANK YOU! I have used that scale! Mainly to trick people into thinking im a good musician! Lydian Dominant is also a favorite of mine.
Hey Doug, thank you so much for checking this out!! I really appreciate it, and I hope you're doing well!
My jazz band conductor was teaching me about using the altered scale over dominant chords just the other day! He was teaching me how to solo over the bridge of Charles Mingus’ tune Moanin’
That's fantastic! Thanks for watching!
Thank you for this lesson, Ben.
Thanks for watching, Drew!
Great lesson Ben, thanks!
Thanks for watching, Richard!
Brilliant playing mate, and great to hear you talk about this
Thanks so much!
Great explanation of the Altered scale!! I never understood how it worked with the b5 b9 etc
I really appreciate it! So glad it was useful
thank you for your lessons
Thanks for watching, Artur!
Excellent!... Very well explained. What I need now is practice, practice and... more practice! ;)
Thanks so much for watching!
Thanks a lot!
Thanks for watching!
Very well explained, Ben!
Thanks so much for checking it out, Matthias!
Timing! I just released a video today on altered scale (aka super Locrian). Great video mate
Nick! I just saw your video as well - it must have been in the air! Watching yours right now!
@@beneunsonthanks man, Apprecaite you tuning in. Cheers
Hey Ben, maybe I missed it but I didn't hear you speaking about a crucial element which is how do you think about it in term of chord tones you emphasize (by your examples it sound to me like you are superimposing C minor melodic minor and not thinking B alt which would mean either thinking of it as Bm7b5 or B7#5 as the tonic )
Thanks so much for watching! I address this at 7:05, where we look at the degrees of the B Altered Scale (rather than purely deriving it as a mode from C Melodic Minor), specifically highlighting the four altered tensions present in the Altered Scale. Hope that helps and thanks again 😀
There are three unique permutations of a scale that has 7 notes with two half steps. Half of the possibilities are degenerate, due to symmetries, or are covered by a mode of another if you want to think of it that way. First family is Diatonic, Second is melodic minor family, and the third is two consecutive half tones with whole tones everywhere else. 1 b2 b3 4 5 6 7. Its a whole tone scale with an extra note. Not sure if that one has a name, or if its worth knowing about. Things exist, what else can you say?
Fine, fine. I subbed
Thanks for subscribing!
the more i watch this video. the more i need to learn more theories 😭
rock on you magnificent Irish son of a gun
Haha thanks for watching! I'm not Irish, but I appreciate it nonetheless! 😂
Your vocal cadence reminds me of that guy on River Monsters. There’s something possibly scary and unknown going on..
I like your lessons!
Nobody answered my question about why the guitar sounds an octave lower than what’s written on the staff. Why didn’t you just use the bass clef as opposed to so many upper ledger lines. It would be perfect for reading piano music…what am I missing?
Haha River Monsters...You raise an interesting question! If the guitar was notated in treble clef at the exact same pitch as middle C on a piano (without a 1-octave displacement), it would likely create too many lower ledger lines. Similarly - if the guitar was notated only in bass clef, it would accomodate some of the lower pitches, but the vast majority of notes in the instrument's range would be forced into upper ledger lines... Perhaps guitar should be notated over both bass clef & treble clef, just like piano. It's possible that this would present a valid (if only partial) solution to the widespread reading issues experienced by guitarists - just an idea! Thanks again for watching 😎
Perfect. Beautiful sounds, what is that guitar?
Thanks for listening! It's a Frank Brothers guitar: www.frankbrothersguitars.com/
Hi Ben! Should I use also de Altered scale over any dominant chords? For instance, going II V I (Minor), thanks
Absolutely! Altered Scale works on almost any Dominant 7 Chord (except for maybe a 7sus4 chord - depends on the exact context). Altered Scale definitely works over the V chord in a Minor ii-V-i progression 😀
@@beneunson Great!!! Thanks Ben
👌
Thanks for watching!
crazy to think that just changing one note of C major makes it sound so different
Absolutely, it's remarkable isn't it?
@@beneunson its amazing
Say I'm playing a 2-5-1 progression (Dm7, G7, Cmaj7). What altered scales (what root notes) could I use on each one to sound TASTY and JAZZY?
You would focus on the G Altered Scale (Ab Melodic Minor) over G7. Thanks for watching!
@@beneunson thanks for the reply what can I do on the 2 and 1 (besides Dorian and Major) to get some cool sounds too?
@@richfrommitchyou dont play altered on 2 and 1. dorian and major is more than enough
Yo Ben! What brand of guitar is that?
It's Frank Brothers guitar: www.frankbrothersguitars.com/
Some talk about b13 and not #5. How is it more correct?
The answers can be varied, however I would say it often comes down to exactly how a chord is voiced. For example, let's take the two variations of B7#5#9 presented at 5:53 - the second voicing of this chord (played at 5:58) could certainly be classified as B7#9b13 due to the #5 (G) being voiced up the octave (and thus serving as a b13), but one could also argue that the #5 is simply being voiced as the highest voice within our B7#5#9 voicing. In my opinion, either argument is acceptable but it can also depend upon the musical context at hand. Thanks for watching 😀
@@beneunson Many thanks for the precise and detailed answer! 🙏🏼🤗
Thanks so much for watching!
7th mode of melodic minor...
That's it!
@@beneunson
:-)
For me the easiest way to play this scale ist to play ionian whith a raised one .
Interesting approach, thanks for sharing!
Am I right in thinking it is *not* a diatonic scale .
You're right - based on the proper definition.
This term also gets thrown around to mean 'within the scale' when referring to individual notes: For example C# is not diatonic to C major; or C# is not diatonic to B altered; C is diatonic to both C major and B altered; etc. I personally use it this way constantly.
The textbook definition - of having 7 notes with 2 semitones and 5 tones with max distance between the 2 semitones (which creates a Major Scale mode) - isn't very useful to me. I just call them whatever modes they happen to be: Phrygian, Lydian, etc. It's to the point - the textbook definition is an extra step for no reason.
So if it's not a major scale mode, then I call it Harmonic Minor, or Harmonic Minor III (meaning the 3rd mode of Harmonic Minor), or Melodic Minor or Melodic Minor IV (4th mode of that), etc. I call it what it is.
If they have common names that people use, then I use those. So I wouldn't say Melodic Minor VII - I'd say Altered.
I am guilty of not using this wonderful scale. Shame on me 🙂
Thanks so much for watching!