The Chromatic Scale

[Chili]

Hey all, i am pretty new to learning scales, but i more or less no how they r used, but i'm learning from a book, and its showed me the c major scale which i've known for a while, and i've just learnt the C chromatic scale, which is every note in the octive right, but i really dont no how this scale would be used in a band or jamming situation, like is it just a c major scale but with all the sharps or something, or is it just a scale u can use in any situation or something....

[vindy500]

yep just play anything you like, pick notes any notes, when your band memebers look at you funny say "im olaying in the chromatic scale!!!!"

[dougjwray]

Think of it like the alphabet, A-Z.
The alphabet contains all the letters you'd ever need, but you'd rarely ever speak or write a single sentence containing all of them.

[steveb98]

Listen to some Stanley Clarke he has some cool chromatic licks. Chromatic works anywhere, but like all scales there are avoid notes, put another way notes that you don't want on strong beats. They tend to be used as passing tones, and easier to work in decending than ascending. Chromatic scale work in that the ear hears the pattern and starts accepting the sound. The key to using chromatic is same as when playing Outside. Chick Corea put it best... "it's not what you play outside, its how you come back in." So starting a chromatic lick is no big deal, but how you end it is what its all about.

Three things to remember.

1. You're never more than a half-step from a right note.
2. Any note works if you play it fast enough.
3. If you hit a bad note, play it again to make 'em think you wanted to.

[paulraphael]

some more sage advice: when hopelessly lost, play chromatic!

[Correlli]

big subject, dissonant tones and chromaticism.