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Guitar Lab: What's In The Box

Bust out of that pentatonic box

Marty FriedmanTommy EmmanuelSteve VaiEric GalesEric Johnson

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Guitar Lab: What's In The Box
Brad Carlton

Brad Carlton

Educator

multi genre

Genres

About this course

This course will present an in depth examination of the five "boxes" that exist in the minor pentatonic scale. You will learn how to vary the order of the notes in each group of four notes. You will also be presented with the concept of rhythmic modes which will give you more options for variety in your rhythm and lead guitar parts. Many technical considerations will be demonstrated regarding the application of slurs in your playing. The final "seed" will be the use of chord scales to develop melodic variations.

What you'll learn

  • Apply various articulation techniques to the same motif
  • Create melodic patterns from simple three-note cells
  • Use rhythmic modes to vary motifs
  • Apply question-and-answer phrasing in solos
  • Eliminate finger rolls using one-finger-per-note technique
Release date: 11/19/2014 • 3h 07m runtime
intermediatelate intermediateguitarelectric guitartechniqueapplied theoryreference
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Sample lessons
B Minor Pentatonic
B Minor Pentatonic
Scale Forms
Rhythm Guitar
Rhythm Guitar
Power Chord Riff #1
Rhythm Guitar
Rhythm Guitar
Power Chord Riff #12
Lead Guitar
Lead Guitar
Riff Ex. 1

What's included

51 lessons • 50 charts • 1 Jam Tracks

Whats In The Box?
This course will present an in depth examination of the five "boxes" that exist in the minor pentatonic scale. You will learn how to vary the order of the notes in each group of four notes. You will also be presented with the concept of rhythmic modes which will give you more options for variety in your rhythm and lead guitar parts. Many technical considerations will be demonstrated regarding the application of slurs in your playing. The final "seed" will be the use of chord scales to develop melodic variations.
B Minor Pentatonic
Notice the color coding of the borders of each two note-per-string scale form in diagrams one and two. This is to help you see the "sides" of each pentatonic scale form. The protocol for labeling each of these five scale forms is as follows; #1: locate the root of the minor pentatonic scale that you want to play with your index finger, #2: play the appropriate fingering associated with that string. The five forms depicted in diagrams one and two are as follows: fifth string root in second position, third string root in fourth position, six string root in seventh position, fourth string root in ninth position, and second string root in 12th position. These five scale forms can also be linked to the five chord forms of the EDCAG system. They are as follows: Am form in second position, Gm form in fourth position, Em form in seventh position, Dm form in ninth position, and Cm form in 12th position. Notice the five "boxes" that occur on each pair of adjacent strings. The sequence of shapes remains the same as you move up or down each string group. The "boxes" change shape on the second and third string group because of the different interval between those two strings.
Rhythm Guitar
This rhythm guitar example is oriented around an inverted B5 on the fifth and fourth strings. I will explain various technical considerations in the video. This example involves a legato slide on the fifth string.
Rhythm Guitar
This rhythm guitar example is oriented around an inverted B5 on the fifth and fourth strings. I will explain various technical considerations in the video. This example involves a hammer-on on the fifth string.
Rhythm Guitar
This rhythm guitar example is oriented around an inverted B5 on the fifth and fourth strings. I will explain various technical considerations in the video. This example involves a legato slide on the fourth and fifth strings.
Rhythm Guitar
This rhythm guitar example is oriented around an inverted B5 on the fifth and fourth strings. I will explain various technical considerations in the video. This example involves a pull-off hammer-on combination on the fifth string.
Rhythm Guitar
This rhythm guitar example is oriented around an inverted B5 on the fifth and fourth strings. I will explain various technical considerations in the video. This example involves a legato slide on the fourth string.

+ 44 more lessons

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Reviews

4 results

Hagstrom2006

Verified buyer

11/21/20

More greatness from Brad

Ha! By now I have over ten of Brad Carlton's courses, and I have learned this: Brad moves along at a determined clip in the material. He expects you to be serious about putting the work in, because he is clearly serious in his perparation and delivery of the material. This course covers what might seem to be elementary material in some respects, but Brad's straight ahead no nonsense approach is gold. It's worth the time put in for those "a ha!" moments when it clicks.

hooty29340

Verified buyer

10/04/20

Find lotta motifs and tricks for those barre chord positions! Kewl.

It's hard to go wrong with any course Brad Carlton has here. He explains every possible detail and gives answers to anticipated questions. A+ instructor and cool courses. This course he shows us a lot of cool ideas for coming up with licks all up and down the fretboard. The box he refers to is the shapes we use aka barre chords and what we can do in each position. He show a lot of examples which other than sparking your creativity in playing, they can certainly aid you in song writing. There are so many tips sprinkled along the way. He shows that you can take several notes and play them in different spots on the fretboard and that sparks new variations that maybe you couldn't play in one position or at least not as easily etc. Give Brads stuff a try. I am always learning new things and ways from him. Thanks Brad!

Greg R.

04/18/20

Geometry

This course really does unlock the finger board by breaking down large areas into manageable "boxes" and seeing, visualizing, how these boxes are inter-connected. Actually when you look at the permutations that four notes can form then technically there are 2 boxes, 1 rectangle and 2 trapezoids, one trapezoid has the one and the third on the low side the other has the one and third on the high side. Its a thing of beauty if you can visualize how these shapes fit together across the entire neck, so I gave it 5 stars.

klog52

12/22/19

Day in the Box!

Brad Carlton is a great educator with many courses in the TrueFire library, I own several of them and couldn't be happier with the progress I have gained. What's. in the box s one of my favorites for learning the pentatonic boxes. What's in the box is simple and easy to follow along with great box patterns and tab for each lesson. If wanting to learn pentatonic boxes and how to connect them this course is an absoulute must to own. This is one of my personal go to courses!

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