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Exotic Guitar Scales – Part 1
- Tuesday, March 2, 2010, 17:37
- 37,054 views
- 10 comments
Exotic Guitar Scales are great for adding spice to your lead guitar playing. I wouldn’t suggest learning any of the 12 scales shown in this lesson before learning the minor pentatonic scale, the natural minor or the major scale (see 4 Scales You Should Know) but they might be part of the sound and guitar style you are searching for. Each of these 5 and 7 note scales is an attention getter! All scales are shown in the Key of A.
Exotic Guitar Scales
To help you experiment with the sound of each of these scales I wrote the following jam track. It consists of a simple A octave pattern so you have freedom to use all the scales shown. I recorded the sitar setting of my Line 6 Variax for this one. It just seemed appropriate. 
Ethnic Jam Track – Key of A
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Download Jam Track (Right click – Save As)
At one time I learned each of these scales shown note for note. After some time I began to hear these scales as containing characteristic notes of the Chromatic Scale (see the lesson on Chromatic Numbering for more on this approach) as well as signature interval combinations. I suggest those seriously studying this list of guitar scales employ each approach.
The guitar scales shown in this guitar lesson:
- Exotic Pentatonic (5 Note) Scales
- Japanese (Kumoi)
- Kokinjoshi
- Iwato
- Balinese Pelog
- Hirajoshi
- Exotic Heptatonic (7 note) Scales
- Double Harmonic (Gypsy Major)
- Hungarian Minor
- Hungarian Major
- Enigmatic
- Neopolitan Minor
- Neopolitan Major
- Persian
A PDF of the scales shown can be downloaded here: Free Exotic Scales Download
Have fun!
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Storm has written 127 stories on this site.
10 Comments on “Exotic Guitar Scales – Part 1”
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What do you think? Is anyone using these exotic scales, or would you?
It’s Ok! I wanted to try another sound in my new solo and your exotic scales is pretty good for it! I think that Enigmatic and Persian scales are the most ‘wild’
@Storm -Â
Exotic scales are amazing! Â
Don’t forget to learn all of the modes within the scales as well folks!!! Â
Hey these scales rocked
I did a lead to your track, if you want to hear it let me know
which type of music form fromjapanese exotic scales…
@rajesh kshetri – It reminds me of the koto, a traditional japanese instrument. But use these scales anytime you need a new sound. The first three scale lack a ’3rd’ so in theory could be used over both major and minor chords.
storm, thank you very much, I have not seen the double harmonic scale in a very long time and I am glad that I ran into it again..I had completely forgotten about it since I lost my reference source on exotic scales….it really fits with some stuff I am doing right now.
I beg you humbly for part 2
Had great fun with this track. Since it’s a bit overwhelming to learn a bunch of new scales, I like to play over this by just thinking A Phrygian and then adding lots of chromatic passing notes OR deliberately omitting a note or two from it consistently. A bit of cheating but having just memorized all my modes and my minor/major pentatonics I don’t think my brain can cope w/ memorizing 12 new scales and then 3 or 4 positions for each!
thanks for these scales just the kind of stuff ive been looking for