Minor pentatonic · E · Guitar
The E Minor pentatonic scale is E G A B D — formula 1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7, step pattern W+H–W–W–W+H–W. Use it over Em7: 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 7. “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 E | Step to next |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | E | unison (0 semitones) | W+H |
| ♭3 | G | minor 3rd (3 semitones) | W |
| 4 | A | perfect 4th (5 semitones) | W |
| 5 | B | perfect 5th (7 semitones) | W+H |
| ♭7 | D | minor 7th (10 semitones) | W |
Chord it implies: Em7. Use it for: minor chords and blues — the first improvising scale most players learn.
Common questions
E G A B D. As scale degrees: 1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7. It has 5 notes.
E Minor pentatonic fits Em7 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 E on the A string at fret 7, and play the one-octave position shown: A-string fret 7, A-string fret 10, D-string fret 7, D-string fret 9, G-string fret 7, G-string fret 9. Every E 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 E