Thanks Chris- gives me a lot to think about. I am halfway through Improvisation in a Major Key. Great info. Not what I am used to. I have memorized scale patterns. Never paid much attention to the notes. I also do not know all the notes on the fretboard so this is proving challenging- especially when you change position. I memorize, one pattern starting in one spot- usually the root note on the low (thick) E string. So you are saying to play the notes for each chord to chase the changes. Seems like a lot of work. Not sure I will ever be able to do all of that. Also, many songs are not just A, D, E so chasing chords seems hard. I would like to learn this but playing a minor penta in blues seems more my speed. I can do that pretty easily up and down the neck. Again, I don't know notes when I am playing, just the 5 shapes/patterns. I can however hear the root note in various locations and land on it at the right times usually.
You're welcome!
Memorizing scale patterns is a great first step. And yes, it can be a lot of effort to get to the next step. :) But like most things, it's only difficult, until it's not. If you practice something enough, at a certain point it becomes second nature & very easy to do.
What my improvisation tutorials aim to show is that the notes of the chords are already in the scale. You just have to be aware of them. So, once you grasp the scale intervals & how they form the chords you don't have to chase chord changes as something extra or additional to the scale. The chords tones are already there!
So, yes you have to know the notes of the fretboard. But it's not that hard. It only takes a little dedicated effort over a little time.
When you've previously mentioned players on YouTube that were inspiring you, that's exactly what they are doing. They are playing scales so that they land on the scale notes that are the notes of chord when the chords happen in the progression.
Let's try this a different way. Try this tutorial on a set of specific blues licks that use minor pentatonic as a basis, but then land on major chord tones.
https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial/217
Give it a try!
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