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Guitar scale · pentatonic & blues

G Yo Scale

Pentatonic scale 1 2 4 5 6 with no half steps and no 3rd. It is called ritusen in Indian music.

Notes GACDE
Formula 1 2 4 5 6
Steps W W+H W W W+H
Mood Open, Calm, Folk-like
Heard in Folk-inspired Melodies, Modal Improvisation

Interactive scale diagram

G Yo Scale · Standard tuning

STR OP 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 E A D G B E

Tap any note to hear it.

G Yo Scale tab: all 5 positions

Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.

Position 1 · E shape frets 3–6
e|-----------------3-5-|
B|-------------3-5-----|
G|-----------5---------|
D|---------5-----------|
A|-----3-5-------------|
E|-3-5-----------------|
Position 2 · D shape frets 5–8
e|---------------------5-8-|
B|-----------------5-8-----|
G|-------------5-7---------|
D|---------5-7-------------|
A|-----5-7-----------------|
E|-5-8---------------------|
Position 3 · C shape frets 7–10
e|-------------------------8-10-|
B|--------------------8-10------|
G|----------------7-9-----------|
D|-----------7-10---------------|
A|------7-10--------------------|
E|-8-10-------------------------|
Position 4 · A shape frets 10–13
e|----------------------------10-12-|
B|----------------------10-13-------|
G|-------------------12-------------|
D|-------------10-12----------------|
A|-------10-12----------------------|
E|-10-12----------------------------|
Position 5 · G shape frets 12–15
e|-------------------------------12-15-|
B|-------------------------13-15-------|
G|-------------------12-14-------------|
D|-------------12-14-------------------|
A|-------12-15-------------------------|
E|-12-15-------------------------------|

How to play G Yo on guitar

Find the root first: G is at fret 3 on the low E string and fret 10 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every G on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (4, 5), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.

Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 3–6. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.

Degrees

DegreeNote
1 G
2 A
4 C
5 D
6 E

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Practise G Yo anywhere, even offline.

This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.

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Questions

What notes are in the G Yo Scale?
The G Yo Scale has 5 notes: G, A, C, D, E.
What is the formula of the yo scale?
1 2 4 5 6, which is the step pattern W W+H W W W+H (W = whole step, H = half step).
Where do I play G Yo on the guitar?
The root G is at fret 3 on the low E string and fret 10 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 3–6, and four more positions connect it up the neck.

Yo Scale in every key

More scales in G