You don't need to read music. You need five note names and one pattern you can see on the neck. If you already know A minor pentatonic, this is the same shape moved five frets lower.
The notes of E minor pentatonic
The E minor pentatonic scale is E – G – A – B – D. It's the E natural minor scale (E F♯ G A B C D) with F♯ and C taken out. What's left is the root, minor 3rd, 4th, 5th and minor 7th, written as 1 – ♭3 – 4 – 5 – ♭7. That formula is the same for every minor pentatonic in every key.
Box 1: the position to learn first (12th fret)
Put your index finger on the 12th fret. Every string uses two notes: the 12th fret plus one at the 14th or 15th. Roots (E) are highlighted. In open position, play the same shape with 0 in place of 12, 2 for 14 and 3 for 15.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| High E | 12 · 15 | E · G |
| B | 12 · 15 | B · D |
| G | 12 · 14 | G · A |
| D | 12 · 14 | D · E |
| A | 12 · 14 | A · B |
| Low E | 12 · 15 | E · G |
Fingering: index on fret 12, ring finger on fret 14, pinky on fret 15. Play it up and down slowly, saying the note names aloud. Then start on the low E string (E) and end on that same E so your ear learns where "home" is.
All five positions
Each box is the same five notes, a different slice of the neck. They tile end to end, so you can chain them up the neck. Frets for each string in E minor, starting from the open position:
| Box | Low E | A | D | G | B | High E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 · 3 | 0 · 2 | 0 · 2 | 0 · 2 | 0 · 3 | 0 · 3 |
| 2 | 3 · 5 | 2 · 5 | 2 · 5 | 2 · 4 | 3 · 5 | 3 · 5 |
| 3 | 5 · 7 | 5 · 7 | 5 · 7 | 4 · 7 | 5 · 8 | 5 · 7 |
| 4 | 7 · 10 | 7 · 10 | 7 · 9 | 7 · 9 | 8 · 10 | 7 · 10 |
| 5 | 10 · 12 | 10 · 12 | 9 · 12 | 9 · 12 | 10 · 12 | 10 · 12 |
Don't try to learn all five in a day. Spend a week on Box 1, then add Box 2, which sits right above it. The shared notes between the two are your bridge.
Connecting the boxes
On the high E string, E minor pentatonic runs 0 – 3 – 5 – 7 – 10 – 12, and each pair of notes belongs to a different box. Slide from the 3rd fret into the 5th and you've moved from Box 1 into Box 2 without stopping.
The relative minor rule: E minor is G major
Every major key shares its notes with a minor key. The rule: the relative minor's root is three frets (a minor third) below the major root, and the relative major sits three frets above the minor root. Count three frets up from E and you land on G, so E minor and G major are relatives and share the same notes. The pentatonic versions work the same way: E minor pentatonic (E G A B D) and G major pentatonic (G A B D E) are the same five notes on the same frets, and only the "home" note changes. Over an Em chord, land on E. Over a G chord, land on G. Our circle of fifths guide shows how every key pairs up this way.
Worked example: E major pentatonic
Use the same rule to get E major pentatonic: E – F♯ – G♯ – B – C♯. Its relative minor is three frets below E, which is C♯, and C♯ minor pentatonic (C♯ – E – F♯ – G♯ – B) is the same five notes. So E major pentatonic is the C♯ minor pentatonic shape. Slide the Box 1 shape above down three frets, so the low E string starts on fret 9 (C♯) instead of 12, and you are playing E major pentatonic with E as home. Same shapes, different root. That is why one set of boxes covers both the darker Em sound and the brighter E major sound.
Why it sounds so good
The scale has no half-step intervals, so there's very little that can sound "wrong" over an E minor chord. Over Em – G – D – A you can stay in one box and it will hold together. Some chords bring in a note the scale leaves out (C and F♯ in the key of E minor), so land on a note the chord shares, such as G or E over a C chord.
Adding the blues note
Add one note, B♭ (the ♭5), between A and B and you get the E blues scale: E – G – A – B♭ – B – D. Near Box 1 at the 12th fret it's fret 13 on the A string and fret 15 on the G string. Use it as a passing note, bending or sliding through it rather than landing on it.
A 5-minute routine to make it stick
- 1 min: play Box 1 up and down at a slow, even pace, naming each note.
- 2 min: improvise over a single Em chord, using only Box 1 and ending phrases on E.
- 2 min: add Box 2, and slide between the two boxes on the high E string.
Do that daily for two weeks and the boxes become automatic. To use the same pattern in another key, slide the whole shape: Box 1 at the 14th fret is F♯ minor pentatonic, at the 10th fret it's D minor pentatonic.
Seeing it on the neck
A table of fret numbers only goes so far. It helps to see the notes lit up on a fretboard, in any key, with the roots marked. That's what we built Fretkit for: pick a root and a scale and the notes appear across the neck. The scale list includes minor pentatonic, major pentatonic, blues, and the seven modes, for guitar and bass. Fretkit won't teach you to solo, so the practice is still yours, but it makes the shapes much easier to find.
See E minor pentatonic across the whole neck
Fretkit lights up scales, chords and the circle of fifths on a fretboard you'll want to look at, plus a fast tuner. Free to start, for iPhone, iPad and Mac.
Get Fretkit on the App StoreFrequently asked questions
What notes are in the E minor pentatonic scale?
E, G, A, B and D. It's E natural minor with the 2nd (F♯) and 6th (C) removed.
Where do I start on guitar?
Box 1 at the 12th fret, or in open position one octave lower. Index finger on fret 12, ring finger on fret 14, pinky on fret 15. The E roots are on the low E string, the D string and the high E string.
Is E minor pentatonic the same as G major pentatonic?
Same five notes, same positions. What changes is which note feels like home: E over an E minor chord, G over a G major chord.