Guitar scale · pentatonic & blues
Bb Yo Scale
Pentatonic scale 1 2 4 5 6 with no half steps and no 3rd. It is called ritusen in Indian music.
Tap any note to hear it.
Bb Yo Scale tab: all 5 positions
Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.
e|-----------------6-8-| B|-------------6-8-----| G|-----------8---------| D|---------8-----------| A|-----6-8-------------| E|-6-8-----------------|
e|--------------------------8-11-| B|---------------------8-11------| G|----------------8-10-----------| D|-----------8-10----------------| A|------8-10---------------------| E|-8-11--------------------------|
e|-------------------------------11-13-| B|-------------------------11-13-------| G|-------------------10-12-------------| D|-------------10-13-------------------| A|-------10-13-------------------------| E|-11-13-------------------------------|
e|----------------------------13-15-| B|----------------------13-16-------| G|-------------------15-------------| D|-------------13-15----------------| A|-------13-15----------------------| E|-13-15----------------------------|
e|-------------------------------15-18-| B|-------------------------16-18-------| G|-------------------15-17-------------| D|-------------15-17-------------------| A|-------15-18-------------------------| E|-15-18-------------------------------|
How to play Bb Yo on guitar
Find the root first: Bb is at fret 6 on the low E string and fret 1 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every Bb on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (4, 5), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.
Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 6–9. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | Bb |
| 2 | C |
| 4 | Eb |
| 5 | F |
| 6 | G |
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Practise Bb Yo anywhere, even offline.
This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.
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Questions
- What notes are in the Bb Yo Scale?
- The Bb Yo Scale has 5 notes: Bb, C, Eb, F, G.
- What is the formula of the yo scale?
- 1 2 4 5 6, which is the step pattern W W+H W W W+H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play Bb Yo on the guitar?
- The root Bb is at fret 6 on the low E string and fret 1 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 6–9, and four more positions connect it up the neck.