what's the 'b' in the scales description?

Hi there! This could be glaringly obvious but i can't work it out.. if you go to the scales page, select pentatonic minor in A you get this in the description:

1,b3,4,5,b7

I assumed 1=A, so therefore 2=A# 3=B etc but that doesn't seem to be the case...

can anyone explain?

cheers!

Koob

Hi! The numbering is derived from the (regular) Major scale. A Major goes: 1=a, 2=b, 3=cis. In a Minor scale the third gets flat (3=c). That's where the b stands for - a flat third.

Hi

don't know if this is going to help you but try using this link for the scales

http://www.chordbook.com/guitarscales.php

hope it helps you

lisa

A Major scale:
A,B,C#,D,E,F#,G#
1,2,3 ,4,5,6 ,7

Am Pentatonic:(1,b3,4,5,b7)
A,C,D,E,G

They never line up..sorry.

thanks for the tips, I worked it out on a piece of paper I think... it seems simple enough, 1=a, b2=a#, 2=b, b3=c etc. till 7 (g#)

bit weird though

You only use each letter once, while writing out scale degrees. You need to know what notes a given scale has, before you can apply an interval formula to it.