Scale for Beginners. Start Here.

The C Major Scale in Open Position is a terrific first scale on the guitar! It helps you develop finger dexterity and pick control and is a useful tool for improvising! #JustinGuitar #guitar #guitarforbeginners

👉 Video Chapters
00:00 Should beginners learn scales on guitar?
01:11 How to play the C Major Scale in Open Position
03:43 How does the C Major Scale sound on guitar
04:16 Scales for Beginners - Practice Tip 1
05:57 Scales for Beginners - Practice Tip 2
07:38 Scales for Beginners - Practice Tip 3
09:04 Scales for Beginners - Practice Tip 4

💬 Get In Touch!

[skippserrano]

If I had had you as a teacher 20 years ago, I would have never quit trying to learn the guitar. Now at 82 I’m back to try again.
Thanks for this video lesson. This lesson revitalized again my desire to learn.

[aniketdutta]

I think learning fretboard before learning chords makes you visualize what you are doing

[tinkrr_]

To anyone who doesn't understand the diagram... it goes in alphabetical order C-G. Basically you need to understand a bit of theory to understand this. It goes in alphabetical order. You must know this far in how to tune your guitar (EADGBE) those are the keys played when you don't have your fingers on the frets. Then as you press down on the frets it increases. Example: If you were to press down on the sixth string (Low E) in the first fret that would make an F, and so on and so on. But that is not all, as there are sharps (#) in between those, every single letter has a sharp except B and E. So the musical alphabet is A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#. Then at the 12th fret it repeats itself. I hope this helped.

[fuzzypanda]

As a beginner trying to learn the right way, this is helpful. The only comment/suggestion I have is that it would be really helpful to have a sheet of the entire scale, like tabs or something where it starts with the 5th string, 3rd fret, then open 4th string, 3rd fret etc. Something visual to show the sequence from start to finish, would be really helpful.

[NIKEV]

Been playing acoustIc by ear for about 15 years, More a buskers approach than understanding the true mechanics, treated myself to an electric & amp and this is my first exercise in terms of understanding what I’m playing, , plenty of bad habits I need to lose.. my playing has plateaued & I know I won’t get any better unless I look at the theory of what I’m playing..

Back to basics, subscribed 👍🙂

[jcomm]

This is really great but the graphic should indicate open strings (via color or tone) so it is more useful.

[sanddancer]

"Practice Perfectly" - True words spoke by a true master. Excellent work Justin!

[jakepersay]

if i l make it big in music i will recommend Justin to the whole world

[dimitris]

That lesson with its diagram was an eye opener for me. We had music lessons at school, mostly thinking and visualizing notes as a sequence, as they appear on a piano. Seeing the C major scale on the frets really helped me connect the dots with what I remembered from those lessons. Mostly helping me find my way around the fretboard. Perhaps this lesson should come before any chords

[DavidSL]

Thank you so much. When i did guitar in high school, i had to do a bunch of scales. Now i am 56 years old, i am trying to pickup guitar again, and this came back to me like it was yesterday.

[Adventures]

To better process these scales and capturing the progression of the fingers on the F.B. it would be really beneficial to have them light-up on the graphic as an added visual tool for learning; thanks for your consideration. You have been a significant help for me, studied flute for 10 years and played in the US Army band, now at 67 happily tackling this marvelous instrument! Very satisfied with my monthly donation of $10.00 ... would encourage the many others here to do the same as you definitely have the attention and respect of scores of budding guitar players!! Thanks Justin Sandercoe!

[ianstrange]

would be really handy if the graphic lite up to the notes being played, i get lost with "2nd string third fret",

[marlonkonrad]

I wasn't gettin' my guitar to play today. After I saw the new videos, you changed my mind! Thanks!

[makvala]

Omg you have no idea how helpful this is to me. I've never attended to any music schools or never learned how to play guitar, and I've just learned what scales and chords and intervals and all that basic stuff is, but i could only understand them looking at a piano. Maybe i was a little bit more exposed to piano growing up idk. And every time any guitarist talked about how to strum C major chord or Em chord etc, i would get so confused. This gave me more clarity tysm

[MegaChang]

There are many guitar lessons on Youtube... But this man is, obviously, one of the best teachers there. Thank you so much, sir.

[modernmusicstudio]

Great Lesson! I like how you broke up the lesson into the scale and how to practice it. Not a lot of people talk about the visuals you can make in your head to help start memorizing it. Thanks for sharing!

[edfaellara]

I have progressed so much in just barely two months. Thank you Justin 👏

[cpleemusic]

Been clumsily teaching myself guitar for a while now. I'm better than I was but still not a 'player' as such. Just started learning scales and found it helpful the way you used the term 'coding' and 'building a map' Those words opened up the importance of programming your brain with this information rather than just guess it every time!

[anjanaanddeepak]

Very engaging video !! Many people are trying to learn Guitar online but there are only few who actually find something useful as this one. Keep doing the good work !!

[evakarjagin]

You are by far best teacher in scales.
Finally someone, you, explained it to me so i understand.
More of these well structured lessons