How is your "Scale organization?" For a lot of guitar students, it can be quite difficult to know how to map out the scale shapes, unless of course you have a good initial practice plan. In the lesson, I'll share a three octave "scale organizer" workout for mapping out scales on the neck. It's so straight-forward that you'll be able to apply the exercise in about 1 min. once you know it... 




Scale organizing is best done when it is established across three root to octave zones on the fingerboard. 

In this lesson, we'll take a "G" Minor scale phrase and ascend with it. Then we'll descend using the relative major, (Bb Major). The scale patterns will be very basic and easy to learn.

We'll map everything (TAB is provided below). The simplicity behind this approach is based on remaining very uniform when ascending and descending, (which will eventually add to its ease of application).

WATCH THE VIDEO:







GETTING STARTED:
We'll begin with a scale Idea that you can take in and start using right away. 

The concept of this exercise is really about scale organization into layers. In fact, one of my old teachers used to call this scale sandwiches. I suppose due to the fact that this exercise layers scale ideas like the layers of a sandwich.

However you look at it, this idea is all about breaking the scale into multiple layouts. A small scale idea for ascending up the scale tones across 3 layers, and then another small scale idea for descending in 3 layers.

What you’ll love about the exercise is that it’s very basic. And, once you learn how to do it, you’ll only need around a minute to play the idea all across the neck. It’s that easy...

So, let me perform a demonstration for you right now, to show you exactly how it all works…

THE EXERCISE RUN:







EXERCISE DEVELOPMENT:
Now that you have an understanding for how this exercise functions. The next thing to do, is break it down in stages and learn more about it in a step by step way, (so that you comprehend all of the notes and you begin getting a good grasp of the intervals).

By learning each part, (slowly in stages), you’ll be better with knowing how to pull the whole drill together. After that, you’ll need to get it committed to memory, (along with modifying it so that it can function in different keys and scales).

Let’s start organizing this exercise in more detail for you right now…





Stage One:
Ascending Scale Segment...







Stage Two:
Descending Scale Run...







CONCLUSION:
If you spend time studying this scale exercise, it will help with not only learning how segments of a scale can be placed across several other areas of the neck in the same way.

But it will also help you become more aware of the scale intervals as you move the pattern that you create over to other keys.

These scale pattern drills can be placed into other regions quite easily, and once you work this out with a few scale phrases (both ascending, and in reverse descending), you’ll get very familiar with how to set up new drills like this one. 

The set-up is so simple, you can do it every couple of days with a new pattern. It’s excellent work!