I know there are many different scales and also modes etc, though is it a good idea to really foucs on the major scale? My logic is that really spending years getting familiar with it should let me hear whats an alteration of it. I know western theory is based around it. But will it pay off eventually if I really hammer away at it?
In some ways it’s me being lazy, I don’t like memorizeing new things. What are your thoughts? experiences?
It’s also something one of my teachers talked to me about while doing music at uni, that you can really get a handle on other scales if you’re intimately familiar with the major scale. Tho I’ve only been focusing on it to get it second nature for a few years.
What is it about the major scale that you don’t feel like you’ve “got down” yet? Is it the ability to identify the notes that are in a major scale in any/every key (from memory, without checking an instrument)? The ability to play a major scale in all keys/positions on guitar? The way each pitch in it sounds relative to the tonic?
I think it’s mostly recognizing the intervals automatically. It’s something I’ve always struggled with, and sticking to and really hammering away at just that scale I feel, and been told will give good results. Tho I’m certainly no expert in theory, and you guys got a lot more experience than me. Mostly wondering if it is an effective use of my time given I can’t focus on a full ear training program at this current point in my life.
I’ve also got it memorized across the whole neck so what I’ve been doing is just playing it loads all over, I just hope I’m not limiting myself to much. It has definitely helped me play whats in my head better tho and get a feel for what a note will sound like before I hit it. Thats really my main goal to be able to play whats in my head with little searching if any. Like proper improvisation.
I wonder if it will allow me to learn more exotic scales with little effort in future, just non stop major scale practice. I guess I’m looking for a kind of mindless thing I can hammer away at with sheer repetition, I know you gota think to learn, but I’d rather not atm lol
One mindless exercise I do have experience with is sequencing, like groups of 3, 4, 5 etc… That has really helped a load in improvisation as you build an automatic sense of what a pattern will sound like though brute force. And it seems to bleed out as it were to sequences and patterns you’ve not played before. Perhaps thats true with the major scale too with enough familiarity
Most rock music is in minor, and major sounds more “out” to me since I started with 12 bar blues and onwards. All the same I think it’s important to at least learn the “sound” of the standard modes, and branch out from there. I don’t think it’s really important to stick in “key” as it is to play to chords.
Having the major scale down 100% helps with learning other scales. As you can essentially just think about the major scale as the parent scale for all others when first learning them.
A lot the “exotic sounds” generally come from either major scale modes, harmonic minor modes, or melodic minor modes.
If we break down the major scale into its notes by function, We see that we have 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 (or 8 instead of 1 if we want to think about the octave above).
So if we were playing A major we would have A B C# D E F# G# A.
The natural minor scale or aeolian mode would be 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 1 . Or by note names A B C D E F G A.
Now if we look at melodic minor we realize it’s just the major scale with a b3 or the natural minor scale with the normal 6 and 7. (you could also think of these as major 6 or major 7 intervals).
Harmonic minor is just natural minor with a 7 not a b7
Realizing this and starting to think in scale degree when looking at your scales and not just as patterns on the fretboard will allow you to start messing around with different scales and picking notes more intentionally by how they sound. Especially if they’re a wider interval.
I would start with the major scale modes and lookup what they’re comprised of by scale degree
A good one to start with is dorian 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7 1 or mixolydian 1 2 3 4 5 6 b7 1.
You can also think about modes relatively (as in A aeolian is the sixth mode of C major) but I find this less useful as sound of modes is based off the intervals against the root.
This is why I personally like the CAGED system it’s just 5 different octave patterns that let you visualize different scale degrees against the root. This helps a ton with arpeggios and scales and playing changes as you can essentially do it all in one position and move out as you get more comfortable. There’s essentially no blind spots (and if you want you can use 3NPS to move between positions). But you can also do this in many other ways.
Well, what are your goals? It sounds like you interested in composition and improvisation? (If the answer is “yes,” I’d also ask on a specialized forum that has the kind of musicians that you’re interested in.)
Now for me, all I do is read other people’s music, and I read sheet music in “relative do” (viewing everything as a major scale), and it works for me. “When all you have is a hammer, the world is a nail [er, major scale].” Actually, to further reduce memorization and have greater uniformity, I also tune in 4ths. Lazy? Yes, definitely. But the reality is that most music that I play can be viewed as a major scale with a few accidentals thrown in every now and then. This perspective might not be useful for composition or improvisation, but that’s not my thing, so I don’t know how limiting it is.
I definitely need to practice the modes. Tho as far as I’m aware they are the same intervals just with a different root note, so major ultimately has all the modes in it.
Following chords is also a massive weakness of mine atm.
Thank you 
One thing I’m focusing currently is just thoughtless practice, most the info I have to memorize and then put in a lot of mental effort to apply to the guitar.
Recognizing the intervals rather than the physical pattern could be the next step for me. It’s not to much mental effort. I already know them a bit.
Thats essentially what I’ve been told, everything is an alteration of the major scale.
And my ultimate goal is to pick up the guitar and play whatever’s in my head, just like I can talk or type. I feel that way as I mature as a player learning everything else, exotic scales, songs etc will be far easier, just like how we can all repeat something someone just said no problem with our words and even pitch.
As of past year I don’t have to memorize songs any more, so I’d rather just really foucs in on something that will help me acually talk on guitar, rather than just song or pattern that I’ll forget eventually.
And 4ths has intrested me, tho as far as I know it makes loads of chords very hard if not impossible?
Yes, be very careful. I don’t play chords with more than four strings (distortion) and am OK, but check this out, particularly the warnings near the end:
One thing I really noticed having a go a piano is how good it sounded vs my guitar playing, because I was able to play a backing chord and then solo over it on keys. Such a massive difference from guitar.
I think I want to keep that ability… relatively, on guitar, so 4ths is probably not for me if I want to play a chord then a little solo then chord etc…
Though the minor 3rd really confuses me at times and slows my theory practice. Maybe I Should tune one of my guitars to forths just for learning theory?
I really wish I started on piano, the guitar has jumbled me up so much trying to understand music theory. I can play alright but my theory sucks.
Why not use some DAW software and have piano, drums, and guitar? If you want theory on a piano, why not just do it?
Laziness man lol.
I know I could learn it if I gave it my all, but as you know life is complicated. Perhaps thats an excuse to not feel more stress in my life, tho I don’t want music one of my main loves in life to become a drag. I am definitely looking for shortcuts.
Though that wasn’t always the case, I spend 3 years at college and a year at uni doing music, I was very serious and it helped me a lot in my understanding and playing of music, but honestly, they were some of the worst years of my life. I’m glad I got out of it, now I can afford to be lazy about it. I definitely don’t mean that in a negitive way, so perhaps relaxed is a better word. And I’ve been playing better than ever, so that intense foucus then relaxation has done something good at least. Though I’m still a deer in the headlights at a lot of theory. My education was more focused on getting me out there playing rather than understanding what I’m doing.
My theory is okay-ish but whenever I’m stuck I just take apart the notes of the chords I’m playing over and compare it with the notes of the scale I’m playing to find out why it is or isn’t working, very simple to do but incredibly powerful.
I feel like guitar players get off to a bad start with theory. We all start with the blues, playing minor scales over major/dominant chords which doesn’t fit cleanly into theory. I think this is very confusing for beginners, especially when they try to do the same thing in normal chord progressions and it doesn’t work 
The minor pentatonic is a very guitar-centric thing as well due to how easily it’s laid out on the fretboard, kinda weird how it’s taught as a scale but is basically just a Dom7 arpeggio (if your curl the minor 3rd up to the major 3rd) with one extra note.
Thats something I really need to get a grip on, the notes of the fretboard, I know enough to find out what note I’m playing, but it takes enough time that most the time I just say forget it and play the pattern.
Thats one reason I would of preferred piano, as it’s linear and logical, yet for a beginner the guitar is all over the place. I really need to spend the time and deal with the stress to learn the notes fully. I’m probably wasting a lot of my time because the notes and chords/notes of the chords are not in my mind as I play.