Scale Comparison

David Raleigh Arnold

A Summary of the Advantages of the Scales in `Dynamic Guitar Technique’ Over All Others

• DGT scales have two octaves with identical fingering. The overwhelming importance of that should be apparent to any discerning musician. That alone is a compelling reason to choose DGT scales for technical practice and abandon the others, replacing one scale at a time.
• DGT scales exploit the maximum physical range of the guitar, and with the three octave versions also exploit the whole musical range of the guitar. Unless you practice worthless scales in a single position, the paramount single technical problem in scale study is that of placing a finger when shifting up or down the neck. DGT scales provide the most shifting practice. The octave frets must always be reached, requiring that the wrist be flexed, which prevents injury.
• DGT scales provide systematic practice in shifting. Each scale targets one or more specific shifts by repeating them in each octave and sometimes in the way the octaves are connected also. Each octave helps you with the other.
• DGT scales use reasonable extensions of the left hand and compression shifting. Those additional techical problems make DGT scales not only more effective for time spent but also less boring, because of their greater variety. The fingerings learned have more application in the real world because more situations are covered. Therefore the player who practices DGT scales will be prepared to make better fingering decisions in his music with imagination and objectivity.

Segovia’s Scales vs. DGT Scales

The detailed comparisons below show the perceptive player or teacher how technical exercises for guitar should be constructed. Each item of comparison is a consideration which was weighed. Theory follows practice. Fundamental concepts usually don’t reveal themselves until after the work is done.

About Scale Sets

Of course technical exercises must be beautiful, not so much as a work of art but as a manifestation of order, as a perfect circle or triangle is beautiful. It’s hard for any artist to keep working on an exercise that’s ugly.

Segovia's are the best of all the rest, and others would score far lower if there were numbers. Please compare others, any of them.

“Fail” means there was insufficient or no consideration of the issue at all. Scales on a single string are better than scales in a single position, but they are unduly tedious. Extended scales or position scales are not pure technical exercises, and working on them solves few technical problems. I don’t consider them worthy of consideration, but please compare them anyway.

Right hand considerations are not addressed here, nor should they be. Scales do not provide intense practice in moving from string to string, which is why the arpeggios in DGT should be considered indispensible regardless.

Scale Comparison

The Contenders

DGT = The Scales in Dynamic Guitar Technique: openguitar.com/files/scales.pdf

Sgva = The Scales of Segovia

Questions

DGT Sgva

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Exploits the whole musical range of the instrument?

pass pass

Exploits the whole physical range of the instrument?

pass fail

Versions, including one octave for beginners?

pass fail

Systematic shift practice?

pass fail

Same positions rising and descending?[1]

pass fail

Systematic position practice?

pass fail

Includes augmented 2nd interval?[2]

pass fail

Includes 2-3 3-2 finger sequences?

pass fail

Equal use of fingers?

pass fail

Equal use of finger combinations?

pass fail

Equal use of fingers in shifts?

pass fail

Same fingers shifted to and from for each of two octaves?

pass fail

One or more shifts in each of two octaves?

pass fail

Same shifts in each of two octaves?

pass fail

Fingering repeated in each of two octaves?

pass fail

Compression (Squeeze) shifts?

pass fail

Examples of octave joining according to fingering within octaves?

pass fail

All 2 & 3 8ve scales ascend to above the 14th fret?[3]

pass fail

Reasonable and appropriate extensions of fingers?

pass fail

Shifting to and from every finger?

pass fail

No habits formed to influence fingering of music?[4]

pass fail

Slide of 2nd finger?

pass fail

Third octave added without changing the other two?

pass fail

Notes:

§1 The advantage to having the same finger placements rising and descending is that it makes the scale easier to learn. Fingering two notes per position rising and almost always descending to the 4th finger to have three notes per position might be sensible if you were ever going to play scales in concert.

§2 Otherwise there is little reason to practice the minors at all.

§3 This prevents injury by making the wrist flex in every bout.

§4 I have seen Segovia fall prey to this in concert when playing the Sor-Mozart variations.

©2009 David Raleigh Arnold - Latest revision: May 9 2010 - http://www.openguitar.com