Scale book

[frankus]

Lol. You'll always find one pedant on a forum.

so you think clarifying what you've said is pedantry? Oh well.

Yes i meant that A Minor Pentatonic and C Major Pentatonic utilize the same neck pattern (in the same position). But it's also true that A Minor Pentatonic and A Major Pentatonic also utilize the exact same overall neck pattern (just not in the same position).

If you are a pattern player - each scale (and it's modes) use the same patterns. The difference in patterns between C major and C melodic minor is only one note - that belies the difference in music that it provides..

so ... symmetry - where is it?

[frankus]

Replacing a butterknife with a fire-brigade-issue saw for dismembering crashed motor vehicles...

Far far far from the truth. Scale grimoires are as Oct said often devoid of context but rich in rules and formulas - great for some people but also disasterously attractive to the kind of person that compares and needs rules and formulas to assure acceptability.

Advancing Guitarist pulls apart theory and makes it useful and familliar, thoroughly exploring the concepts so people turn theory into music.

To my mind, most guitarists buying a theory book, play undigested theory for the longest time - effectively turning music into mathematics - treating harmonic theory as axioms, playing musical truisms and expecting people to appreciate it simply for it's adherance to a set of rules that as listeners our ears out-grew shortly after potty training (seriously) - the appeal to believe in these rules is born of a desire for an easy route to musical security. I also believe that this immaturity is swept under the rug by playing the same nursery-rhymes faster, or using broader techniques.

I actually think these people are shame-based and not really suitable for band or audience situations. I say it here, for anyone wondering whether they need a scale book or a couple more jam sessions with mates - save yourself!

[SevenSharpNine]

Replacing a butterknife with a fire-brigade-issue saw for dismembering crashed motor vehicles...

I personally would prefer a book that goes in depth for a few scales to a book that has numerous scales and no context for their use. When I was starting out I picked up a scale book that was nothing but scales. It had about 50 pages of various scales in every key with absolutely no text explaining their purpose or use in music. It ended up being useless. Even after I memorized a scale, I had absolutely no idea what to do with it.

With the major/minor scale and the pentatonic scale being the most widely used, I think the internet is probably preferable to most scale books. It's not that difficult to find the scales along with instructions for how to use them, but if having a book is the student's preference, I would definitely go with something that has explanation in addition to the scales.