Minor Pentatonic vs Minor Blues on Bass
The C minor pentatonic and the C minor blues share 5 notes — C, Eb, F, G, Bb. From there, the C minor blues adds Gb.
Bass · 4-string, tuned low to high: E, A, D, G. 24 frets.
- E string: fret 1 F (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), fret 2 Gb (flat 5), fret 3 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), fret 6 Bb (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), fret 8 C (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), fret 11 Eb (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), fret 13 F (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), fret 14 Gb (flat 5), fret 15 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), fret 18 Bb (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), fret 20 C (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), fret 23 Eb (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues).
- A string: fret 1 Bb (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), fret 3 C (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), fret 6 Eb (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), fret 8 F (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), fret 9 Gb (flat 5), fret 10 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), fret 13 Bb (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), fret 15 C (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), fret 18 Eb (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), fret 20 F (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), fret 21 Gb (flat 5), fret 22 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues).
- D string: fret 1 Eb (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), fret 3 F (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), fret 4 Gb (flat 5), fret 5 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), fret 8 Bb (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), fret 10 C (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), fret 13 Eb (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), fret 15 F (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), fret 16 Gb (flat 5), fret 17 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), fret 20 Bb (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), fret 22 C (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues).
- G string: fret 0 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), fret 3 Bb (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), fret 5 C (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), fret 8 Eb (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), fret 10 F (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), fret 11 Gb (flat 5), fret 12 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), fret 15 Bb (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), fret 17 C (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), fret 20 Eb (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), fret 22 F (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), fret 23 Gb (flat 5), fret 24 G (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor 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 |
|---|---|
| Minor Pentatonic | R · b3 · 4 · 5 · b7 |
| Minor Blues | R · b3 · 4 · b5 · 5 · b7 |
Notes in common
| Note | In Minor Pentatonic | In Minor Blues |
|---|---|---|
| C | R | R |
| Eb | b3 | b3 |
| F | 4 | 4 |
| G | 5 | 5 |
| Bb | b7 | b7 |
Notes that differ
- Only in the minor blues: Gb (b5)