Major Pentatonic vs Major (Ionian) on Guitar
The C major pentatonic and the C major (ionian) share 5 notes — C, D, E, G, A. From there, the C major (ionian) adds F, B.
Guitar · 6-string, tuned low to high: E, A, D, G, B, e. 24 frets.
- E string: fret 0 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 1 F (4), fret 3 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 5 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 7 B (7), fret 8 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 10 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 12 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 13 F (4), fret 15 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 17 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 19 B (7), fret 20 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 22 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 24 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)).
- A string: fret 0 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 2 B (7), fret 3 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 5 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 7 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 8 F (4), fret 10 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 12 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 14 B (7), fret 15 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 17 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 19 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 20 F (4), fret 22 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 24 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)).
- D string: fret 0 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 2 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 3 F (4), fret 5 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 7 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 9 B (7), fret 10 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 12 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 14 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 15 F (4), fret 17 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 19 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 21 B (7), fret 22 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 24 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)).
- G string: fret 0 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 2 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 4 B (7), fret 5 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 7 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 9 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 10 F (4), fret 12 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 14 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 16 B (7), fret 17 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 19 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 21 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 22 F (4), fret 24 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)).
- B string: fret 0 B (7), fret 1 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 3 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 5 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 6 F (4), fret 8 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 10 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 12 B (7), fret 13 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 15 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 17 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 18 F (4), fret 20 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 22 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 24 B (7).
- e string: fret 0 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 1 F (4), fret 3 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 5 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 7 B (7), fret 8 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 10 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 12 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 13 F (4), fret 15 G (5 of C Major Pentatonic and 5 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 17 A (6 of C Major Pentatonic and 6 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 19 B (7), fret 20 C (root of C Major Pentatonic and root of C Major (Ionian)), fret 22 D (2 of C Major Pentatonic and 2 of C Major (Ionian)), fret 24 E (3 of C Major Pentatonic and 3 of C Major (Ionian)).
Swipe the chart sideways to see all of it.
Both scales above are drawn on one guitar 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 (Ionian) | R · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 |
Notes in common
| Note | In Major Pentatonic | In Major (Ionian) |
|---|---|---|
| C | R | R |
| D | 2 | 2 |
| E | 3 | 3 |
| G | 5 | 5 |
| A | 6 | 6 |
Notes that differ
- Only in the major (ionian): F (4), B (7)