for building lines over minor chords . But further analysis reveals something helpful that helps us to create more interesting and less ‘ root centric ’ lines .
Before I elaborate , I want to make one quick point . Remember how I mentioned the importance of building ideas based on harmonic movement and not just matching scales to chords ? One of the ways we can do this is to borrow , or substitute scales or ideas played from other scale degrees that on the surface might not seem like they would fit , but instead complement or embellish the sound . When we take a scale or shape that is normally played from the root of a chord and move it to a different starting note , I like to refer to that as ‘ displacing ’ its sound and it is incredibly useful in improvisation . Having said that , let ’ s revisit the minor pentatonic and Dorian scales as they would be played starting on the root of a minor 7 chord .
Let ’ s first compare the two scales directly . Look closer and you ’ ll notice that the A minor 7 pentatonic scale tones are essentially a subset of the notes found in the A Dorian scale . FIGURE
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 5
3 shows how the pentatonic scale ( marked in red ) ‘ sits inside ’ the shape of the Dorian scale .
Now here is where it gets interesting . The B minor pentatonic scale is also a subset of the A Dorian scale . When looked at from an intervallic perspective over A minor , the B minor pentatonic scale ( marked in red ) includes the scale degrees 2 ( or 9 ), 4 ( or 11 ), 5 , 6 ( or 13 ), and root . See FIGURE 4 .
This demonstrates that a B minor pentatonic scale can be used to improvise over an A minor 7 chord . This is a great example of a displacement substitution because we are taking a scale that we typically look at playing from the root of a minor chord , but we displace it and start it from scale degree 2 , instead .
To add another interesting element to all this , the E minor pentatonic scale is yet another subset of the A Dorian scale ! Used over A minor , It includes the scale degrees 5 , b7 , root , 2 ( or 9 ), and 4 ( or 11 ). SEE FIGURE 5 . ( The E minor pentatonic scale is marked in red ).
So , now we can add that an E minor pentatonic scale can also be used to improvise over an A minor 7 chord .
This shows us that three different minor pentatonic scales are found inside the Dorian scale : A minor pentatonic , B minor pentatonic , and E minor pentatonic . As such , we can use any one of them to play A minor 7 ideas or mix them together to create unique sounding hybrid phrases .
THE TAKEAWAY Why is this so cool ? Because it allows us to free ourselves from the root when thinking about playing fills or improvising , and it likewise elevates our phrases to a higher level of sophistication . For bass players this is so important because of how foundationally aware we are . Instead of just thinking about using a single minor pentatonic scale from the root of a minor chord , now we can displace its starting point to create much more colorful and intervallic ideas that are not so root centric and bottom heavy with respect to harmony .
It is one thing to see it on paper , but this concept won ’ t make it into your musical vocabulary unless you hear it , internalize it , and practice implementing it . The first thing you will want to do is listen to each of the individual pentatonic scales used over the A minor 7 chord . This will allow you to hear the different character of each scale as it sits over the chord . Even though all three of these pentatonic scales use only notes found in the A Dorian mode , they will still imply a different color because you are restricting your note choices to very specific scale degrees . I cannot overstate the importance of this . Stated another way , the mood and color of your phrasing is influenced as much by the notes you do not play as the notes that you do play . This is a vitally important concept that we need to be aware of . Make sure that as you practice each of these ideas that you do not play any notes outside of the chosen scale ; otherwise , the character and sound of the idea will be significantly blurred by the extra scale