Minor pentatonic · C♯ · Guitar
The C♯ Minor pentatonic scale is C♯ E F♯ G♯ B — formula 1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7, step pattern W+H–W–W–W+H–W. Use it over C♯m7: it is the scale for minor chords and blues — the first improvising scale most players learn. Below, every note is marked on the fretboard in standard tuning; press play to hear it on a synthesized guitar while each note lights up, or tap any fret to sound that note.
Visualizer
Guitar · standard tuning
Piano
Tap any note on the diagram to hear it. Play loops the scale up and down one octave in eighth notes (switch Loop off for a single pass) in the position starting at fret 4. “Show” switches or combines the fretboard and keyboard; “Sound” picks the instrument you hear. Audio is synthesized in the browser.
Reference
| Degree | Note | Interval from C♯ | Step to next |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | C♯ | unison (0 semitones) | W+H |
| ♭3 | E | minor 3rd (3 semitones) | W |
| 4 | F♯ | perfect 4th (5 semitones) | W |
| 5 | G♯ | perfect 5th (7 semitones) | W+H |
| ♭7 | B | minor 7th (10 semitones) | W |
Chord it implies: C♯m7. Use it for: minor chords and blues — the first improvising scale most players learn.
Common questions
C♯ E F♯ G♯ B. As scale degrees: 1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7. It has 5 notes.
C♯ Minor pentatonic fits C♯m7 and, more generally, minor chords and blues — the first improvising scale most players learn.
1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7 — the step pattern from the root is W+H W W W+H W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Start on the root C♯ on the A string at fret 4, and play the one-octave position shown: A-string fret 4, A-string fret 7, D-string fret 4, D-string fret 6, G-string fret 4, G-string fret 6. Every C♯ on the neck is a root, so the same shape works in every position where the notes are marked.
Keep going
Same scale on piano · all Minor pentatonic pages: Minor pentatonic hub · theory: chord-scale theory.
Other scales from C♯