Major Pentatonic vs Major Blues on Bass
The C major pentatonic and the C major blues share 5 notes — C, D, E, G, A. From there, the C major blues adds Eb.
Bass · 4-string, tuned low to high: E, A, D, G. 24 frets.
- E string: fret 0 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues), fret 3 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues), fret 5 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues), fret 8 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major Blues), fret 10 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues), fret 11 Eb (flat 3), fret 12 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues), fret 15 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues), fret 17 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues), fret 20 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major Blues), fret 22 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues), fret 23 Eb (flat 3), fret 24 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues).
- A string: fret 0 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues), fret 3 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major Blues), fret 5 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues), fret 6 Eb (flat 3), fret 7 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues), fret 10 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues), fret 12 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues), fret 15 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major Blues), fret 17 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues), fret 18 Eb (flat 3), fret 19 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues), fret 22 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues), fret 24 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues).
- D string: fret 0 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues), fret 1 Eb (flat 3), fret 2 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues), fret 5 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues), fret 7 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues), fret 10 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major Blues), fret 12 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues), fret 13 Eb (flat 3), fret 14 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues), fret 17 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues), fret 19 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues), fret 22 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major Blues), fret 24 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues).
- G string: fret 0 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues), fret 2 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues), fret 5 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major Blues), fret 7 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues), fret 8 Eb (flat 3), fret 9 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues), fret 12 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues), fret 14 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major Blues), fret 17 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major Blues), fret 19 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major Blues), fret 20 Eb (flat 3), fret 21 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major Blues), fret 24 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major Blues).
Swipe the chart sideways to see all of it.
Both scales above are drawn on one bass fretboard in the key of C. Notes belonging to both are drawn as a split two-color dot, so the notes they share and the notes unique to each are visible in one picture.
How the formulas differ
Scale degrees are the key-independent way to compare two scales — these stay the same in every key, and they are what actually distinguishes one scale from another.
| Scale | Degrees |
|---|---|
| Major Pentatonic | R · 2 · 3 · 5 · 6 |
| Major Blues | R · 2 · b3 · 3 · 5 · 6 |
Notes in common
| Note | In Major Pentatonic | In Major Blues |
|---|---|---|
| C | R | R |
| D | 2 | 2 |
| E | 3 | 3 |
| G | 5 | 5 |
| A | 6 | 6 |
Notes that differ
- Only in the major blues: Eb (b3)