C♯ Minor Pentatonic Scale (C♯ E F♯ G♯ B)
C♯ minor pentatonic serves the relative minor of E, the guitar's favorite major key, so rock in E that turns moody lands here. C♯ E F♯ G♯ B, the low root at the ninth fret.
Fretboard diagram
Every C♯ minor pentatonic note from the open strings to fret 22. At fret 12 the map starts over an octave up.
Notes in this scale
| Symbol | Interval | Note |
|---|---|---|
| R | root | C♯ |
| ♭3 | minor third | E |
| 4 | perfect fourth | F♯ |
| 5 | perfect fifth | G♯ |
| ♭7 | minor seventh | B |
Where to land
A lead that never touches its root is an exercise. In the first twelve frets C♯ sits on the low E string at fret 9, the A string at fret 4, the D string at fret 11, the G string at fret 6, the B string at fret 2, and the high E string at fret 9. End phrases on one of them until it's automatic, then start aiming for whichever chord tone the band is sitting on instead.
Over a C♯m chord, three of the five notes are chord tones, C♯, E, and G♯. Those always sound settled. The other two pull toward a chord tone a fret or two away, and hearing which way they pull is most of what practice is for. Over a C♯m7 the B joins the settled list.
Keep exploring
Same root
Same notes
E major pentatonic is these five notes with E as home. Same frets, different landing spots.
Chords it fits over
C♯m, C♯m7, and, for the blues, plain C♯7.
Nearby keys
C♯ minor pentatonic FAQ
What notes are in the C♯ minor pentatonic scale?
C♯ minor pentatonic contains C♯, E, F♯, G♯, and B. That's the root, the minor third, the perfect fourth, the perfect fifth, and the minor seventh.
What fret does C♯ minor pentatonic start on?
The lowest root is C♯ at fret 9 on the low E string, and most players anchor there. The scale itself covers the whole neck, and everything repeats twelve frets higher.
What major scale has the same notes as C♯ minor pentatonic?
E major pentatonic. C♯ is the relative minor of E, so the five notes are identical everywhere on the neck. Only the note you treat as home changes.