The site has some great video on the power of rhythm, music therapy and Parkinsons’, amusia, and more. There’s also a mind-blowing excerpt on NPR.

I’ll be seeing him on speak on the fifth of November. If you have any questions you would like me to ask, please let me know.

A couple tips gleaned from his blog:

• Mental Rehearsal: Harness the language of the right brain and the subconscious and practice doing it right in the mind first.
• Record Yourself: Something I advocate in Turbocharge Your Playing.

I’ve been coaching some of the best musicians and I’ve been learning exactly what makes them tick. I’m working on revealing everything you should know. But before I do that, I could use your help.

I want to hear what you really need to know right now that can make the biggest difference in the quality of your musicianship. Exactly what challenges you’re facing, what information would be most valuable to you, and what’s been hardest for you to overcome.

Here’s the deal: if you give me a few moments of your time and input, I’ll gratefully give you a FREE gift. I’ll share some never released patterns that the greatest soloists use to burn on the bandstand. Some real head turners! It’s my way of saying, “Thanks” for contributing.

All I need to know is: what do you want to know most about improving your musicianship? It could be anything at all… even if you think it’s silly.

Just answer the survey questions (many of them are simple and easy multiple choice) and type your most important questions in the little boxes below… ask me whatever question will help you the most and I’ll make sure to include it in the near future.

By the way, these free patterns are only for the first 100 people who respond… so please answer all the questions right now and then click on the “Here Are My Questions!” button.

Thanks so very much for your input, I really appreciate it!

Your privacy always comes first and your email address is never shared with anyone ever.

If you can keep the key signatures straight as you play this, then you’re definitely ready to move on to something more challenging.

And hopefully, if you’ve been following this series, you can imagine phrases that aren’t confined to the tonic key.

That was the purpose of this series on playing outside. To stretch your ear and technique beyond conventional tonality. I hope you’ve enjoyed the exercise.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 15

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

Now this pattern is the exact opposite of the twelfth dominant 7 pentatonic scale pattern. Every other note is transposed into the “outside key” but this pattern begins in the outside key and is a full bar long.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This pattern is almost the exact opposite of the previous dominant 7 pentatonic pattern. Every other note is transposed into the “outside key” but this pattern begins in the outside key and is only two beats.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This dominant 7 pentatonic pattern is super squiggly. Every other note is transposed into the “outside key” for superior in-the-moment transposition skills.

As always, don’t just memorize this pattern technically. After you have your technique down and can play it relatively fast, focus on your mind and how it understands the theory logically as you play.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12

I’ve used this technique constantly in my creative pursuits. Whether it be composing, arranging, or songwriting, the Oblique Strategies have helped to keep me in a state of creative flow.

I wanted to create a mobile version since I find myself sans computer a lot now that I have my iPhone. This online version of the Oblique Strategies will work on any browser even though it’s optimized for iPhone.

Check it out and bookmark it if you like it: Oblique Strategies

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

The primary purpose of this dominant 7 pentatonic pattern is to force you to transpose keys a number of times during the bar. If you keep your wits about you as you play this pattern and don’t just memorize it without giving it any thought, you’ll start to become extremely comfortable moving between two keys at will. This pattern changes keys 5 times within a single bar.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This dominant 7 pentatonic pattern sandwiches the tonic key with two full beats of the “outside” key on either side. It starts in the transposed key, moves to the tonic key, and finishes in the transposed key.

What I like about this pattern is how the “outside” key flows over the bar into the next pattern. This gives you some experience of playing with tension not only by mode, but also by meter.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This dominant 7 pentatonic pattern spends a full beat in the original key, modulates to the “outside” key for two full beats, and then returns to the original key for the final beat.

You can play around with this pattern and find some useful alternatives. Try pushing the pattern back a beat so it starts on beat 2 and notice how it feels different. Or you can pull the pattern forward so it starts on beat 4 of the bar. Obviously, you can do this with all of the previous patterns to experiment and come up with unique and interesting twists.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

Similar to dominant 7 pentatonic pattern 3, just by playing around with two different scales, we can invoke many more different keys and harmonic shapes. This is the first pattern to start in the “outside” key.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This dominant 7 pentatonic pattern gets challenging again. Like the previous pattern, it spends more time in the “outside” key. Only the first and fifth notes are in the original key. This means that you have to switch keys a total of three times during the entire eight-note phrase.

A useful exercise is to take a single bar of this pattern, find the next bar that continues the scale, and put them together to create a two-bar phrase. It would like something like this: Bar 1 + Bar 5, Bar 2 + Bar 6, and so on.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This dominant 7 pentatonic pattern spends more time in the “outside” key. Only the first full beat of each phrase is in the original key. Without looking at this pattern, can you play it? You should be getting more comfortable switching keys. Even if it doesn’t feel completely natural, you might be able to imagine what the following pattern will sound like.

And that’s key to getting the most out of these patterns. It’s not just a technical exercise, but an exercise in expanding your sense of harmony.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This dominant 7 pentatonic pattern gets tougher again. It has four notes in C and four notes in D flat but they are all spread throughout the bar.

Again, this pattern helps you to get comfortable transposing quickly. And all of these patterns get your ear comfortable with hearing a number of different sounds: the dominant 7 pentatonic scale, the juxtaposition of two neighboring scales, the polytonal sound of consistently playing “outside” the key, and with some of the patterns, the sound of quickly changing melodic motion.

So think of these patterns as tools to increase your musical vocabulary, improve and challenge your ear, and to practice technical peak performance.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This pattern should be easier than the previous dominant 7 scale pattern. The transposition doesn’t split the bar so you only have to think about transposing once during the full pattern.

The rewarding function of this pattern is that you can use it as a preparation to go deeper into the transposed key. While the pattern drops back down to the original key at the beginning of each bar, in a practical application, you can remain in the transposed key. So it can be used as a fresh twist in your solos because you’re beginning to play outside the original key on beat 4, which will provide tension not only tonally, but with the meter as well.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

This dominant 7 pentatonic pattern is similar to the previous pattern. It still moves up a half step for a total of 2 notes in an eight note pattern. But this time, the transposed notes are the fifth and eighth notes in the sequence. This means that you have to transpose up a half-step twice during the pattern, rather than just once.

If you’re paying attention, you’ll notice that this pattern creates shapes that invoke other keys than just C and D flat. For instance in bar 2, the transposed pattern invokes an E minor arpeggio with a Major 7th leading tone. There are other nice little sonic easter eggs in there if you go searching.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

If Pattern 1 seemed easy to you, I guarantee you’ll find this next one more challenging.

Last time, we simply took a four-note pattern and transposed it up a half step for the second half of the bar. This time, we’re using a full eight-note pattern and transposing only the fifth and sixth notes up a half-step.

The purpose of this pattern is to make you comfortable switching between modes for just one beat. Some of the sequences will be easier for you than others. Just practice slowly until you can play it in all keys at a fast speed and wrap your head around what you’re playing in real time.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2

Table of contents for Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale

1. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1
2. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 2
3. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 3
4. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 4
5. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 5
6. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 6
7. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 7
8. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 8
9. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 9
10. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 10
11. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 11
12. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 12
13. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 13
14. Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 14

A favorite scale of jazz saxophonist, John Coltrane, is the Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale.

During the 60′s, Trane, and other avant-garde musicians like Ornette Coleman, created a unique style of “playing outside” the chord changes. Often, this sound was created by playing a half-step above the tonic mode.

While it’s easy to play in D flat over the key of C, these masters of tension and release would weave in and out of the tonic as if they were tearing harmony apart and rebuilding it.

This series of patterns is designed to make you comfortable switching between two modes a half-step apart. We’ll start simple and get more complex as we go.

This particular four-note pattern changes modes every two beats. Obviously, you would want to practice this in all keys.

Download the full pattern:
Playing Outside: The Dominant 7 Pentatonic Scale Pattern 1

“To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan, and not quite enough time.”
– Leonard Bernstein, conductor