The idea for this post is the merging of an exercise I posted previously on playing 5 Pentatonic modes from one note (it'd probably be helpful to check it out first), with formula #1 from the book Vol. 2 "Pentatonics" by the eminent saxophonist and guru, Jerry Bergonzi. In this book, the Gonz presents 8 different formulas (4 descending and 4 ascending, based on steps and skips up or down), for creating pentatonic lines.
What we're doing here this time is taking Bergonzi's pentatonic formula #1 (which is (x) skip step down (x) step down (x) skip step up (x) step down), and applying it to the Pentatonic b3 scale (C - D - Eb - G - A).
This translates, in C Pentatonic b3 (starting on the tonic) to: C, skip step down to G, step down to Eb, skip step up to A, step down to G, and the pattern repeats. Of course, a "step" in this case refers to the distance between adjacent notes of the pentatonic, not the diatonic, scale.
This, as well as all 8 of Bergonzi's formulas, can be applied regardless of the starting note.
This translates, in C Pentatonic b3 (starting on the tonic) to: C, skip step down to G, step down to Eb, skip step up to A, step down to G, and the pattern repeats. Of course, a "step" in this case refers to the distance between adjacent notes of the pentatonic, not the diatonic, scale.
This, as well as all 8 of Bergonzi's formulas, can be applied regardless of the starting note.
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B. Stern
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