outside the scale

hardly play tabs,like to create my own stuff.Just started getting into the scale and lead stage of learning and loving it,after playing stuff that i think sounds really cool,theorectically i discover that im playing a mixture of scales,is that a bad habit or do i just go for the ride.P.S jimmy page rocks

Basically, if it sounds good, it is good! But make sure you learn the basic scales without the added notes as well. The scales you are playing are probably real scales or modes of some weird origin. What you can do is input the notes into the "reverse scale finder", the link is at the top of the page, and then see what scale it is you're playing. There are loads of ethnic scales on it, and then when you find one you like, you can learn it, and then use it in your solos. :)

when soloing using a weird scale though, its best to play over just a stationary chord, as the scales can sound very out of place over a chord progression. harmonise the scales by adding the 3rd and 5th above each note, for example in D major:

D E F# G A B C#
F# G A B C# D E
A B C# D E F# G

D Em F#m G A Bm C#dim

You can also add the 7th as well to get Dmaj7, Em7, F#m7, Gmaj7, A7, Bm7 and C#m7/-5 (the 7th is a m7, but the 5th is a dim5, this chord is also called C# half diminished)

D major is pretty boring though. If we took the D Phrygian Dominant Scale (which is the 5th mode of the harmonic minor scale), then you get more ususual chords, and a progression using these chords would sound quite weird, which can be good at times, but it depends on the effect you wanna have.

The D phrygian dominant goes like so, and it has a somewhat Spanish feel to it, which is why its also known as the "Spanish Scale"

D, Eb, F#, G, A, Bb, C, D

Harmonising these notes produces Dmaj, Ebmin, F#dim, Gmin, Adim, Bbaug and Cmin, which arent exactly what you find in most chord progressions, but by playing over the Dmaj tonic (I) chord, it works well.

Also use these new unusual scales to create interesting riffs. Makes a refreshing change to just the minor pentatonic. :)

Hope this helps, sorry if I was explaining stuff to much or too little for you.

oops the D major chords didnt come out very well

D   E   F#  G   A   B   C#

F#  G   A   B   C#  D   E

A   B   C#  D   E   F#  G



D   Em  F#m G   A   Bm  C#dim

thanks alot blackholesun for your answers.