Why are you learning the guitar? The most obvious answer would probably be to master the various scales and to play the solo on stage. Well! Playing the guitar is one thing and playing a lead guitar on stage in a live gig is another thing.

The place where it all starts – as in the practice to play the lead guitar is with the minor and major scales. The major and minor scales are normally separated by just about four frets and they are known as the relative scales. They are known as the relative scales because of one reason: they have the same tones. In major scale the tone is DO - RE - MI - FA - SO - LA - TI and in minor scale it becomes LA - TI - DO - RE - MI - FA - SO.

Whether you are gearing to get into the Rock scene or into heavy metal, the major as well as minor scales will be the backbone of lead guitar. You need to master them thoroughly before you can move forward and learn some of the other advanced scales and this is going to do you a lot of good when you actually get down to playing lead guitar. The major scale is used more often and is the most familiar of them all. Let us take a look at the attributes and values for major scale

• Scale Formula: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7
• Step Construction: W-W-H-W-W-W-H
• Distinguishing Degree: M7
• Good over Chords: M , M7 , M6
• Good with Progressions: I-IV-V , II-V-I , I-VI-IV-V , I-III-IV-I , I-IV-I , I-V-I

In the minor scale the attribute will be:

• Scale Formula: 1-2-b3-4-5-b6-b7
• Step Construction: W-H-W-W-H-W-W
• Distinguishing Degree: m6
• Good over Chords: m, m7 , m6
• Good with Progressions: Im-bVII-bVI , Im-IVm , Im-Vm , Im-bIII-bVII

The major scale is also quite similar to the Ionian mode and is made up of 7 notes like any other diatonic scales. The Ionian scale is the one that is the first of the 7 notes. So if your note was C, D, E, F, G, A and B then your Ionian note will be C-major. The other important scale in the Major scales is the major pentatonic and it is one of the most popular one too because without it lead guitar playing is incomplete. The different pentatonic major scales include A, A#, Ab, B, Bb, G, G#, Gb, F, F#, E, Eb, D, D#, Db, C, and C#.Let us take a look at a comparison chart that has C Major, C-Chromatic and Pentatonic scales:

• Chromatic C C# D D# E F F# G G# A Bb B
• Major C D E F G A B
• Major Pentatonic C D E G A

If you are thinking of playing solo then you need to focus on the various guitar improvisation techniques. Guitar improvisation may tough but actually what you really need is a good grasp of guitar basics, speed, and lots of practice.

There are guitar legends and then there are guitar solos. It is tough to define whether guitar solos define legends or whether legends define guitar solos. But the truth is that many a legend has been born but only a few were recognized due to their great guitar solos. But what is a guitar solo without the proper guitar improvisation techniques?

The one thing that you need to remember is that to achieve perfection in guitar improvisation, you need to be familiar and well versed with the music that you are going to play solo for. Another important aspect is that you should have the song stored in your memory, each line and word. This will help you to identify the structure that will enable the progression and you will know exactly what chords need to be played. Then it will be easier for you to select the scales that will compliment each of those chords. The last step would be to determine the specific notes within the chosen scales on which you will need to focus.

This is where the major scale comes into the picture, which is Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do. Any guitar improvisation technique follows the major scale to some extent. In fact, whether you play the guitar or the synth, any type of music always comes from the major scale. Hence to make your guitar improvisation technique more sound and effective follow the major scales.

Guitar Solo Improvisations

 These are some of the guitar improvisation techniques that you can practice to get the solo right on target

1.    Bend: You can start by playing the first note and then bend your guitar strings with your playing finger until you are able to hear the next note. There are different types of bends like 1/2, 1 1/2, 2 steps bends.

2.    Bend & Release: You can start with a bend and then release back to the first note.

3.    Pull-off: start by plucking the first note and then pull the second note at a lower fret.

4.    Slide: You can fret a note or even multiple notes and then slowly slide to another fret without taking the pressure off your fingers while moving.

5.    Hammer-on: start by plucking the first note and then hammer the second note at a higher fret.

6.    Vibrato: a useful guitar improvisation technique, you can start by repeatedly bending the pitch slightly up and then bring the note back to its original pitch.

7.    Tapping: You can tap with your index finger on a written fret.

8.    Pinch Harmonic: Another useful guitar improvisation technique where you need to pick the string and then touch it using the edge of your right hand thumb.

9.    Natural Harmonic: You can’t really do without this. Start by touching the guitar string lightly just over the fret bar and then pluck it. Make sure not to press it down.

10.         Palm Mute: This is one of the easiest guitar improvisation techniques. You need to touch the guitar strings slightly using the palm of your playing hand.

Guitar backing tracks are used mostly by lead guitarists in rock, metal and blues. These tracks are used for the sole purpose of practicing or live performances. There are different types of guitar backing tracks available on the Internet. Some are recorded in low quality or midi formats while others are professionally recorded. To get the best tracks for your practice, ensure that you purchase tracks from reputable companies such as LickLibrary or Planet of Rock. The best guitar backing tracks are the ones that are not in the midi format and have no fade outs. There are three different versions that are available including:

•    Record mixes: these guitar backing tracks will include a mix of bass guitar, drums, rhythm guitar and backing vocals.
•    Instrumental: This is the preferred type of guitar backing tracks that is most commonly used for playing lead or solo. These backing tracks will have only instrumental music and no guitars and no vocals.
•    Backing vocals: These guitar backing tracks will have backing vocals and other instruments except the guitar.

There are several websites that will provide you guitar backing tracks in midi format but that is definitely not the right format for learning guitar solo or improvising your lead. Whenever you download these tracks they should be in high quality bitrate mp3 format or ideally, it should be provided to you in a remastered audio CD. You can purchase guitar backing tracks for some of the top performers like John Petrucci, Dream Theater, Metallica, Joe Satriani, Guns and Roses, Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen, Green Day, Iron Maiden, Eagles, Eric Johnson, Ritchie Blackmore, David Gilmour, Dimebag Darell, Santana, Jimi Hendrix, Whitesnake, Bryan Adams, Brian May, Deep Purple, and many more.

>Some of the most popular guitar backing tracks includes:

•    Guns N Roses - Sweet Child O Mine
•    Chuck Berry - Johnny B Goode
•    Pink Floyd – Comfortably Numb
•    Eric Clapton - Wonderful Tonight
•    Dire Straits – Telegraph Road
•    The Eagles - Hotel California (Acoustic)
•    Gary Moore - Still Got The Blues
•    Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train
•    Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit
•    AC DC - Highway To Hell </B></I>

Most of the solos that are played by various lead guitarists use two specific scales: the minor pentatonic and the major pentatonic. The best way to learn is by playing the minor and major pentatonic in every key across the fretboard with guitar backing tracks playing in the background. It is not easy to play lead but then with practice, time, effort and the use of the right guitar backing tracks, you will be ready to do your own live gig!