Why bother with classical guitar scales, when I have so much else to practice?

Oftentimes in lessons, people ask why they should practice major scales on guitar. They wonder what they’re good for, and how they’ll be used.

It’s natural to want to know the payoff of whatever work we’re doing.

It takes a lot of time and energy to learn guitar scales (especially on classical guitar), so it’s reasonable to want to know why we toil.  That’s what this article is about.

The major scale, natural minor scale, harmonic minor scale, blues scale, major pentatonic scale, and minor pentatonic scale are just a few of the basic guitar scales that you might have heard of, or learned.

There are a number of benefits gained from learning scales on guitar, from the physical abilities they promote, to the musical, theoretical and interpretive insights they can give to the music we play.

However, people at the beginning and intermediate levels of their classical guitar playing, especially if they do not know very much music theory, cannot actively use guitar scales in learning and interpreting pieces. So scale practice can seem like a lot of work with no (or little) payoff. They seem just like a “busy work” chore that has been passed along through the ages (i.e. “My teacher made me do it in my practice routine, so you have to do it too.”).

Technical benefits of learning scales on the classical guitar

At beginning to intermediate levels, the benefits of guitar scales are largely technical.  But these are huge.  Here are some benefits on the technical level:

Practicing your scales:

1. Develops muscle memory of common scale patterns. This is a great benefit. And learning classical guitar pieces, we frequently find very similar “shapes” or material. Having a reference in which to put these facilitates faster learning and better memorization.

2.Improves right-hand and left-hand synchronization. This allows musical notes to flow smoothly from one note to the next, instead of being choppy or halting.

3. Leads to greater facility with right hand index and middle finger alternation. This skill is widely used in classical guitar music, especially in melodic lines.

4. Enhances string crossing using alternating index and middle fingers.  String  crossings are one of the most frequent stumbling blocks in getting pieces up to speed and in playing in a beautiful, flowing fashion. (It’s also one of the most frequent mishaps when playing for others.)

5. Provides aural training of how major scale harmonies sound. Many players find it easier to play guitar by ear than by reading music, and some find the opposite to be true. Being able to hear and recognize what sounds correct allows us to bring this important sense into our learning process.  Scales help with that.

6. Builds speed and velocity, leading to dexterity and greater facility. As we practice our basic major scale shapes on the guitar, we are able to increase the speed with which we play them. This allows us to acclimate to “driving fast”.  This in turn helps us to bring the music we play up to tempo as well.  (If you can play your guitar scales at 120, then playing this piece at 90 is not so big of a deal.)

7. Develops the ability to visualize complex scale patterns and shapes. One method of memorization that we use on the guitar is visual.  As we memorize and practice complex scale patterns, we get better at the process of recognizing and memorizing shapes. This skill directly transfers over to learning and memorizing new pieces.

8. Provides a measurable and definable goal, which leads to incremental successes and encouragement. We can quantifiably measure how fast we are playing or what we have memorized. If we track our progress, we can document and witness our results. Whereas in much of our practice, it becomes like watching grass grow (you know it’s happening but you can’t see it or notice it on a daily basis), quantifiable results allow us to track our progress and celebrate our incremental triumphs.

There are probably more that could join this list, but these benefits alone make it worthwhile to practice major and minor scales on a daily basis in your guitar practice routine.  However, even greater benefit comes when you use guitar scales as a basis for learning practical musical theory on the classical guitar.

The Strange Language of Music Theory

All western music is built around the basic structure of the major scale and minor scale. Everything we think of as being music comes from these guitar scales. They are the building blocks of our entire musical system.

Just as the alphabet is the basis of our system of reading and writing, the major scale, minor scales (natural minor scale, harmonic minor scale, and melodic minor scale), and pentatonic scales (major pentatonic scale and minor pentatonic scale) make up the “alphabet” of music in the traditional Western sense.

• Melodies and tunes in Major keys are created using musical notes from the major scale.
• Similarly, melodies and tunes in Minor keys are created using notes from the minor scale.
• Major Chords are made from certain notes in the major scale.
• Similarly, Minor Chords are made from notes in the minor scale.
• Harmonies are created from the progression of chords.
• Songs or pieces are created from a combination of melodies and/or harmonies.

Most everything we do on the classical guitar basically comes down (theoretically) to scales.

Parallels of scales and the alphabet

There is a definite parallel between the major scale and the alphabet. There is no inherent value in being able to write the B or the letter C. But there is a benefit in being able to convey an idea using words that are written using the alphabet.

One main challenge for beginning and intermediate classical guitar players is bridging the gap between being able to play guitar scales and actually knowing what to do with them and how to use them as a tool.

To continue with the language analogy, it’s like knowing the alphabet but not being able to read or spell, form sentences, write poetry, or tell stories.

Benefits of having an understanding and practical use of music theory:

1.  The ability to see groups of notes as a logical group, as opposed to a string of separate entities
2. Music theory is a tool by which to see the larger structures involved in a piece.
3. Allows for greater ease in memorizing large pieces or sections of music
4. A common language with which to communicate with other musicians, regardless of language or culture
5. Music Theory helps you learn pieces faster on guitar
6. Understanding theory allows us to appreciate the complexity, sophistication, creativity, or simplicity of a piece of music
7. Allows us to make connections between phrases or chord progressions in different songs. For instance, “This passage is similar to or identical to this passage in another song that I already know.”  This allows us to generalize our knowledge and experience.
8. The theoretical structure of a piece gives clues as to the phrasing and perhaps articulation. This allows for more effective musical expression.
9. Overall, understanding theory and its practical uses on the classical guitar allows us deeper insight and understanding of music in general.  It deepens our relationship with each piece of music that we choose to play.

The issue of how to learn theory is beyond the scope of this post. But suffice it to say that it’s a necessary part of a well-rounded musical knowledge, and worth the sustained effort it takes.

A valuable part of making theoretical knowledge useful in our classical guitar practice is simply ingraining the major and minor scales into our hands and minds.

Knowledge alone doesn’t amount to much.  If it did, anyone who was proficient on any instrument could easily play classical guitar as well.  And this clearly isn’t the case.  It takes time and repetition to ingrain the patterns and techniques used to play guitar scales.

So practicing scales, even without knowing why, provides you with valuable skills that can be built upon later.

The bottom line on guitar scales

So to sum up the question of why to practice scales, it really just comes down to the simple answer of, “because it’s good for you”.

Do we really need to learn long division or how to spell, now that we have tools that will do it for us?  Yes, because it gives us a deeper understanding of our world and how it works.

In the musical sense, it’s like brushing our teeth or eating our peas and carrots. We make sure to do it because we know that we become healthier and stronger for it.  

If we can approach any guitar scale with a good attitude and with specific challenges in mind (such as speed, smoothness, or dynamic shaping, etc.), then we progress more quickly and enjoy a richer musical experience.

Super-charging your guitar practice

If you also put a little daily time into studying theory as well, then the technical benefits begin combining with the more intellectual benefits, and you become a much more well-rounded musician.

You learn pieces more efficiently and memorize them more quickly. You’re able to phrase your music more intelligently and have a tool with which to connect more deeply with both the music and with listeners.

Classical Guitar Scale Resources

• Quick-Start Guide to Practicing Scales
• 5 Top Classical Guitar Technique Mistakes
• Right hand scale technique: I and M alternation
• The 5 Basic Scale Shapes for Guitar
• Should You Learn The “Segovia Scales”
• How to Use a Metronome for Guitar Practice
• Practice Guitar Scales: Introducing Variations
• Classical Guitar Speed Bursts
• Play Legato Guitar! Synchronize the Hands for More Fluidity