Minor Pentatonic vs Minor Blues on Piano
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.
Piano, C3 to C5. Notes in this scale, low to high: C3 (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), Eb3 (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), F3 (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), Gb3 (flat 5), G3 (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), Bb3 (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), C4 (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues), Eb4 (flat 3 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 3 of C Minor Blues), F4 (4 of C Minor Pentatonic and 4 of C Minor Blues), Gb4 (flat 5), G4 (5 of C Minor Pentatonic and 5 of C Minor Blues), Bb4 (flat 7 of C Minor Pentatonic and flat 7 of C Minor Blues), C5 (root of C Minor Pentatonic and root of C Minor Blues).
Swipe the chart sideways to see all of it.
Both scales above are drawn on one piano keyboard 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)