FEEDBACK REQUESTED

BarryFrye

Blues Newbie
Our teacher, Griff, has kindly given permission for me to request your feedback on the Pentatonic Scale Training Wheel app. It’s like an electronic flash card for the scale. Please include whether you are beginner, intermediate, or experienced. The video is about 9 minutes long.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkvNK1NtQoI
Thank you in advance, Barry Frye info@guitar-stw.com or fryebd@yahoo.com (One suggestion received was ‘freeze’ Key and Position and only change what is displayed in String and Note.)
 

Paleo

Student Of The Blues
Some requested feedback:

I can see a lot of good uses for this app, especially for your stated main purpose, learning note names and locations of the requested note and, especially, the root.

1) However, I’m not sure I see an immediate benefit in being able to play a pentatonic scale from any starting note in a scale.

Griff usually stresses being able to play a scale from any root note on the fretboard. Playing from any note in a scale would actually be a "mode" of that scale.

For example, in the D minor example at 3:40 you find the root, D, and the "requested" note, F, using the Cheat sheet and then suggest playing up and down from F. Playing a D minor scale up and down from F would actually be playing an F Major scale.

(It would also be useful to realize that the F is the b3 in D minor while also being the root in F Major.)

For the next example in C Major you end up playing up and down from E and in the next example you end up playing E minor up and down from G (= G major). Again, we usually stress playing a scale up and down from it’s root, rather than from each individual note in the scale.


2) Also, you express scales in terms of position, whereas Griff uses the “Box” designation. This will cause a bit of confusion for his students. Position numbers and Box numbers are the same for minor scales, but not for Major.

For example, the E minor example in position 5 is also Box 5.
The C Major example in position 3 would be Box 4 to Griff's students.

It took me quite a while to get used to the "Box" system having come to Griff from first learning the “position” system.

3) Lastly, you state there are 7 scales, A thru G, and your cheat sheet only has natural notes.

I’m assuming you would eventually add sharps and flats?



As you re-state at the end, this can be valuable in learning the names of notes on the fretboard. And I agree.

But only if you remember the name of a note after you find it the first time.:)


I wouldn't have any trouble playing an A minor pentatonic scale up or down, left or right, from any A on the fretboard.

But if you asked me to play an A minor pentatonic scale from any D on the fretboard......

I'd have to think about that.:confused:
 
Last edited:

BarryFrye

Blues Newbie
Some requested feedback:

I can see a lot of good uses for this app, especially for your stated main purpose, learning note names and locations of the requested note and, especially, the root.

1) However, I’m not sure I see an immediate benefit in being able to play a pentatonic scale from any starting note in a scale.

Griff usually stresses being able to play a scale from any root note on the fretboard. Playing from any note in a scale would actually be a "mode" of that scale.

For example, in the D minor example at 3:40 you find the root, D, and the "requested" note, F, using the Cheat sheet and then suggest playing up and down from F. Playing a D minor scale up and down from F would actually be playing an F Major scale.

(It would also be useful to realize that the F is the b3 in D minor while also being the root in F Major.)

For the next example in C Major you end up playing up and down from E and in the next example you end up playing E minor up and down from G (= G major). Again, we usually stress playing a scale up and down from it’s root, rather than from each individual note in the scale.


2) Also, you express scales in terms of position, whereas Griff uses the “Box” designation. This will cause a bit of confusion for his students. Position numbers and Box numbers are the same for minor scales, but not for Major.

For example, the E minor example in position 5 is also Box 5.
The C Major example in position 3 would be Box 4 to Griff's students.

It took me quite a while to get used to the "Box" system having come to Griff from first learning the “position” system.

3) Lastly, you state there are 7 scales, A thru G, and your cheat sheet only has natural notes.

I’m assuming you would eventually add sharps and flats?



As you re-state at the end, this can be valuable in learning the names of notes on the fretboard. And I agree.

But only if you remember the name of a note after you find it the first time.:)


I wouldn't have any trouble playing an A minor pentatonic scale up or down, left or right, from any A on the fretboard.

But if you asked me to play an A minor pentatonic scale from any D on the fretboard......

I'd have to think about that.:confused:
Hello Paleo, Thank you so much for your feedback. I will take some time to re-read your comments compared against the video. You raise some good points. I will look into the terminology to see how it could be confusing. Thank you again.
 
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