reviews – Modern Music Theory Improvisation and Application

Master the Whole Tone Scale with Simple Fingering

Posted on April 19, 2026April 19, 2026 by Modern Music Theory and Application

Please watch video above for detailed info:

Hi Guys,

If there are two scales that I am always asked about, these are the whole tone scale and the diminished scale.

But, out of the two, it’s the whole tone scale especially!…And it’s due to the general textbook cumbersome and awkward fingering that puts guitarists off.

So, today let’s take a look at how to play the Whole Tone Scale with a simple fingering like that which we would employ for the pentatonic scale.

PART 1:

Standard textbook guitar fingering:

This, 3 note per string example above is a pretty uncomfortable and awkward affair that dosen’t flow and isn’t especially fluent for quick passages or phrases.

So what do we do?

Well, the answer is to approach it like we would the pentatonic scale, so that we can move the SHAPE about and at the same time we can VISUALISE it.

PART 2:

Here, is a preferred fingering that uses mainly 2 fingers: This, like the pentatonic means that we can move about quickly.

Musical staff and guitar tablature showing notes and finger positions of the whole tone scale in pentatonic form with red slur and bend markings

What’s truly great about this fingering is that we can copy and repeat it exactly “Down 1 Tone or Up 1 Tone” each time right along the guitar fingerboard.

BASIC SCALE SHAPE/FINGERING;

Copy Shape Exactly Ascending:

Copy Shape Exactly Descending:

Copy Shape Exactly Ascending:

This means that we can easily exploit the scale, play it fluently and see it visually which in turn gives us complete command of it.

PART 3:

Now, that we can see and hear what we are doing and have a fluent fingering let’s make use of the scale harmonically.

To begin with, let’s use a flattened 5th interval [and Bb7] over a moving bass. [See video at the top of the page].

Now, let’s use this same harmony and create an [arpeggiated] chordal picking vamp:

Sheet music and guitar tablature showing a repeating whole tone scale triplet pattern with flat notes and finger positions on the 5th, 7th, 9th, and 10th frets

Again, it’s easy to see and hear how we can quickly create composition now that we can visualise a simple shape all across the guitar fingerboard.

PART 4:

What, also works really well from this visual whole tone approach is the exploitation of the high low high [or mirroring] effect.

EXAMPLE 1: High to Low

Sheet music with treble clef and tablature showing whole tone scale musical notes and finger positions on a guitar fretboard

Here, we will create a little phrase that’s going back and forth between the low and high registers.

EXAMPLE 2: Back and Forth

PART 5:

We will now apply this simple scale fingering to a classic Messiaen chord

Application and example:

Sheet music and guitar tablature for a Messiaen piece in Gb9b5/E chord showing notes and finger positions

PART 6:

Finally, we can come out of the shape and move up and down the fingerboard connecting the whole tone [1 step] movements.

So, let’s take a chord of C augmented with a 9th:

As we can see, it’s easy to move down the fingerboard shifting through scale and arpeggio along the way. [See, video above]

IN CONCLUSION:

This was just a quick look at how essential it is to have simple fluid guitar fingering and simple 1 step connection for creating whole tone scale lines/phrases.

Having a “Visual” as well as harmonic understanding makes improvisation and composition so much easier with this scale.

And, as I have reiterated throughout this post, having a repeated shape only 1 tone apart makes the scale very user-friendly.

SCALE PDF DOWNLOAD:

Whole Tone Scale 4 Repeats Download

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Fusion Guitar Chords of John McLaughlin Part 2

Posted on February 19, 2026 by Modern Music Theory and Application

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Chords of guitarist John McLaughlin Lesson and Examples

IMPORTANT: Please watch video above for detailed info:

Hi Guys,

Today, we will look at some more Modern Jazz Fusion Chords.

These are primarily based around a Major Triad [played] over a different bass note: Commonly called “Slash” chords.

Here, are some essential common slash chords employed in/for reharmonisation.

PART 1:

The first chord we will investigate is the tri tone concept of C/F#.

This unique voicing creates a colourful dissonant timbre.

In this example we have a 2nd inversion triad of C Major played over an F# bass note.

Slash chord diagram for C/F# with tablature and finger positions for tri tone substitution for guitar — Chord diagram and tablature for the C/F# slash chord, highlighting its bright voicing and tritone

Next, we will examine the most common slash chord type.

This is the 7 Sus 4 chord. And, in this case it will be C/D. They may be played in succession or as a substitute for a dominant chord. [for example C/D instead of D7]

This type of chord is heard a lot in pop songwriting, but is also highly prominent and best known for the sequence in Herbie Hancock’s composition “Maiden Voyage”.

Maiden Voyage Herbie Hancock 7sus Chord Example

[What you will start to notice is that the Major triad has a lovely bright quality when played over a different bass note]:

Here, is the guitar voicing with a root C Major chord over a D bass.

Slash chord diagram for C/D as a dominant guitar chord, showing fret positions and finger placements. — Guitar chord diagram illustrating the C/D slash chord for modern jazz fusion.

The next chord is the classic Dominant 7th in its 3rd inversion.

Generally in Fusion these chords do not resolve and/or are played once again in succession.

For, our example we will employ a triad of D Major with it’s 7th [C] in the bass

Slash chord diagram for D/C 3rd inversion dominant guitar chord with finger placements indicated. — D/C slashchord diagram illustrating voicing and finger placement for guitar.

Next up, we have one of John McLaughlin’s favourite Slash Chords.

This is an Eb triad over an E [up 1/2 step] bass. [This is also known as a13b9 that works well with the diminished scale].

Slash chord diagram for Eb/E with finger placement indicated on a guitar fretboard. — Slash chord diagram illustrating the Eb triad over an E bass note by jazz guitarist John McLaughlin.

Here, we have an interesting chord that is also a favourite of the late great jazz guitarist Pat Martino.

With the open E note resonating in the bass this produces an extremely beautiful set of tone colours in one chord.

Guitar slash chord diagram for FMaj7b5/E with finger positions indicated on the fretboard. — Slash chord diagram depicting Fmaj7b5/E on guitar for modern jazz fusion.

In order to create that big ethereal/dissonant sound let’s exploit John Mclaughlin’s unique nylon string guitar voicing.

This is a B Major triad over a C Bass. [This also works well with the open E string ringing out].

Musical slash chord diagram for B/C showing finger placement and tablature below. — Slash chord diagram illustrating the B/C chord voicing for guitar, showcasing positions and finger placements.

Finally, we will manipulate another tri-tone voicing:

This will be a less bright but highly resonant sound with a root F# triad over a low G bass note.

Slash chord diagram for F#/G showing finger placement on the guitar fretboard. — F# triad diagram over a low G bass note for creating a slash chord

PART 2:

Okay, you might ask. What do we do with these chords?

How to we compose with them?

Re- harmonise with them?

Actually use them?

Well, firstly, lets take a basic/common chord sequence like,

iii Vi ii V7 I

Musical notation showing a progression with slash chords Em4, C Maj7, Am7, Dm7, G7, and C Maj7, labeled with functional harmony indicators I, Vi, ii, V7. — Slash chord modern fusion substitutions and reharmonisation

For the first chord we will employ a C6/9, but, we will only use the E A D G tones and create a “Quartal” sound.

From here we will move a tri-tone away from the Am7 chord and employ an Eb triad. We will still establish the dominant in the bass by employing the 5th note of Am7, [the note E] hence we have Eb/E.

For chord ii [Dm7] we will have a C triad over an F bass note acting as a First inversion Dm7 chord. [You could also think of this as having an added 9th and 11th]

The dominant chord will now have the dominant root in the bass with a Db Major triad, [a flat 5th/tri-tone away] on top in the treble.

This then returns to the CMaj 6/9 tonic chord

Below is another example:

Notice, the reharmonisation and how the basic chords are exploited with colourful slash chords.

Sheet music featuring slash chord progressions including Eb/E, B/C, Db/B, and V7 in a 4/4 time signature. — Example of reharmonisation using colorful slash chords in a blues 12-bar structure.

THE BLUES

To complete this, let’s put them into a blues 12 bar structure [turn around] so that you can clearly see how to create composition from them:

Sheet music example illustrating blues slash chord substitutions and harmonic progressions, including D6/11/E, G6/11/E, and various chord changes. — Blues chart example showcasing slash chord substitutions and harmonic rhythm in a 12-bar structure.

From the above chart notice that the first 4 bars are more of a long drawn out affair in the tonic key. Next, this is repeated in a similar fashion [or a variation] with chord IV of the key.

But, in the last four bars we exploit the harmonic rhythm to create drama and turn the music around.

Musical score showing various slash chords and their relationships, including ii, V7, iii, and Vi chords. — A blues chart showcasing various slash chord progressions, highlighting ii, V7, iii, and Vi patterns.

BLUES CHART: Example,

Sheet music chart illustrating blues slash chord substitutions with examples in key of E, featuring sections labeled I, IV, and various chords. — Blues chart example showcasing substitutions and slash chord progressions.

PDF DOWNLOAD:

JML chords part 2 Download

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“In a Silent Way” Zawinul/McLaughlin Guitar Analysis

Posted on February 6, 2026February 13, 2026 by Modern Music Theory and Application

John McLaughlin/joe Zawinal “In a silent way” Guitar Analysis Lesson

Please watch video above for detailed info:

Hi Guys,

Today, a look at the amazing performance/improvisation of “In a Silent Way” by John McLaughlin and Joe Zawinul.

PART 1:

The key to this is to look at the 16 bar structure and view the two main chords and acknowledge how the melody is/can be contained within them.

FORM and CHORDS Chart:

A notated piece of sheet music for Joe Zawinal and John McLaughlin "In a silent way" chords and melody. — Musical notation illustrating the chords E6/11 and Bm7/E for ‘In a Silent Way’ Zawinal/McLaughlin

So, from this simple chart we can observe that we have two main prominent chords. These are E6/11

Musical sheet showing an E6/11 John McLaughlin chord diagram with specific finger placements on a guitar neck. — Chord diagram for E6/11, highlighting its structure used in the performance of ‘In a Silent Way.’

and Bm7/E

Chord diagram for Bm7/E John McLaughlin chord featuring finger placements on the guitar fretboard. — Chord diagram for McLaughlin’s Bm7/E, illustrating finger placements and string usage.

6/11 as Substitutions;

Here, is how the 6/11 is exploited by John for the intro: So, instead of the plain minor 7th chords we have:

A music sheet showing chord progressions by John McLaughlin and Joe Zawinal labeled G#m Sub, F#m Sub, and Dm Sub with corresponding note positions indicated by numbers on the staff. This is for the song "In a silent way". — Chord chart showing G#m, F#m, and Dm substitutions with a pedal bass note for guitar improvisation.

PART 2: Chord Melody Barre Shapes:

Now, let’s loosely add some chords [Shapes] to the melody, and see what we can come up with,

EXAMPLE: Notice that the 1st note of each melody section [circled] fits perfectly within the chord shape.

A sheet of music by John McLaughlin and Joe Zawinal notation featuring various notes, chords labeled E6/11 and D6/11, with annotations indicating E/F# from "In a silent way" — Chord progression and melody outline for ‘In a Silent Way,’ highlighting E6/11 and D6/11 McLaughlin chords.

In terms of harmonising the melody and creating a nice ethereal or dissonant resonance on the guitar it is a really good idea to employ a pedal note.

In this case it is the low E string.

Example: