Woodshed | MASTER CLASS

BY GEORGE GARZONE

Using Minor Example 1a: C Major Pentatonic Scale Example 1b: A Minor Pentatonic Scale

Pentatonics
In The Funk Zone
Example 2: G Minor Pentatonic

T he Pentatonic Scale is one of the most com-

monly used scales in the world. There are
many different Pentatonic Scales, all of which

Minor Pentatonic Scale, commonly known as

the Minor Pentatonic Scale, is the focus of an Example 3
instructional DVD I recently did with JodyJazz
called In The Funk Zone With George Garzone.

Pentatonic Scale and how it relates to its

Major Pentatonic counterpart. As you’ll see in
Examples 1a and 1b, the A Minor Pentatonic

C Major Pentatonic. Both scales share the same

a different texture to the sound is created. Play

Playing In The Pocket

-

into some “outside” pentatonic ideas, I would

Example 3 is a direct transcription from the

In The Funk Zone DVD and E-Book (Chapter
1.2). With this transcription, you can see and

to learn it by ear. You can use the E-Book tran-

scriptions as a reference, but you should tran-
scribe much of this material yourself. (To see
-

Example 4

! !7), and once in

All the notes on the transcription are from will create an open sound because of its

that you practice this scale in all 12 keys.

can play this quasi-Minor Pentatonic scale with- Improvising Outside Of The Key

Blues Sus Scale

!3, or the second note of the
!
minor pentatonic, forms the Blues Sus Scale. of simplest and most common methods

Minor Pentatonic Scale, you can transform it to

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 Example 5a Example 5b

Example 6a

Example 6b

Example 7

tonality. This is another transcription of an exam-

up a half step to C# Minor Pentatonic. Example ple that I perform in the In The Funk Zone DVD

to B Minor Pentatonic. These are just a few examples of how I look

sound of the tonality shift. I recommend prac- freedom to play what you want, when you want.
-

too much on the outside it can upset the structure,

helps to keep the whole axis in line.

Do what you want, and do it the way you feel

is based off of how you feel. DB

TENOR SAXOPHONIST GEORGE GARZONE IS A SAXO-

PHONIST AND JAZZ EDUCATOR IN THE BOSTON AND NEW
- YORK AREAS. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON GARZONE
AND HIS INSTRUCTIONAL DVD IN THE FUNK ZONE
ment in a quasi-scrambled formation. Just let it WITH GEORGE GARZONE, GO TO JODYJAZZ.COM OR
GEORGEGARZONE.COM.

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