Scale Tips and Why You Could be Practicing Them Wrong

BigMoney

I was working on scalar related exercises and figured I would share them with the forum in case anyone was interested.

Take a C Major scale for example. You learn it ascending and descending in interval of seconds. This is fine and dandy but there is no point in practicing scales like this forever because it will eventually become a waste of time. When you practice something you already know, you aren't really practicing. You wouldn't sit down and practice an open G chord for 30 minutes would you? You already know how to do that so you wouldn't be learning anything from mindlessly playing it for that amount of time. The same principle applies to scales. 

To get around this, you can practice scales using:

Different intervals such as 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, 6th, and finally 7ths.
Practicing them on 1 string, then 2 strings, etc.
Practicing them in triads/arpeggios - The C Major scale would be a Cmaj arpeggio, then a D minor, E minor, F Major, etc.
Practicing the scales while simultaneously saying/singing the note you're playing (harder than it sounds)

If one employs all these methods to each mode and each key they become a wizard. Anyone find these tips useful?

Cheers

mellowsun

why do we practice scales anyway?

Lestratcaster

mellowsun said:

why do we practice scales anyway?

To improve technique, picking and string co-ordination (dexterity). Also to develop improvisation skills as any solos is bound to come from a scale. Same goes for melodies.
Training your ear for articulation, tone, tuning, etc.

bingefeller

I can't remember when I last practiced scales and would probably have trouble playing a scale in intervals unless I thought about it.  I don't find these kind of exercises that musical or interesting.  

Barney

I had a skype lesson a couple of month back with a really good jazz guitarist and he said take a scale and play random notes ...dosnt really matter iff its musical or not ....its hitting notes but never play 2 notes on the same strung after each other.....iv used it and find it a really good way to visualise the notes of the scale seperatly instead of the scale as a whole ...

Funkfingers

The BBC 4 Extra radio programme Inside The Music: From Score To Encore includes an edition of Desert Island Discs featuring Daniel Barenboim. During the conversational interludes, Barenboim expresses his opinion against practicing scales to excess. His fear was that the habit would have a negative influence on composition and improvisation.