Your pentatonic scale has five notes. The fretboard has twelve notes per octave. What about those other seven notes?
Most guitar players treat them like they don’t exist. They stick to the pentatonic box and never venture into the space between. But those “in-between” notes — the chromatic passing notes — are where you add color, movement, and sophistication to your blues playing.
The trick is knowing how to use them. Because if you land on the wrong note at the wrong time, it sounds like a mistake. But if you use chromatic notes as passing tones — notes that connect one scale tone to another — they sound intentional, smooth, and musical.
This is the final piece of the blues scale puzzle. You know your minor pentatonic scale. You understand where your tonic is. You can find your I-IV-V chord tones. Now let’s talk about filling in the gaps.
What Are Chromatic Notes?
The chromatic scale is all twelve notes in Western music — every note, every fret, no gaps. If you start on the 5th fret of the low E string and play every single fret up to the 17th fret, you’ve played one octave of the chromatic scale.
The pentatonic scale, by contrast, only uses five of those twelve notes. In A minor pentatonic, you’ve got A, C, D, E, and G. That leaves seven notes you’re not using: A#, B, C#, D#, F, F#, and G#.
Those seven notes are your chromatic passing notes. They’re not part of the pentatonic scale, but they’re not forbidden either. You just have to know how to use them.
Here’s the rule: chromatic notes are passing tones, not landing tones. You don’t stop on them. You don’t emphasize them. You use them to smoothly connect one scale note to another.
The Half-Step Approach Rule
The most common way to use chromatic passing notes is the half-step approach. You play a chromatic note that’s one fret below or one fret above your target note, then resolve to the target.
Let’s say you’re in A minor pentatonic, and you want to land on the note D. D is at the 5th fret of the 5th string. Instead of going straight to D, you can approach it from a half-step below — that’s C# at the 4th fret. Play C# quickly, then resolve to D. It sounds smooth and intentional.
Or you can approach from above. Play D# (6th fret) and slide or bend down into D. Same effect — the chromatic note creates tension, and the resolution to the scale tone releases it.
This works for any note in your pentatonic scale. Find your target, then approach it from a half-step above or below. That’s chromatic playing in a nutshell.
Chromatic Passing Notes in A Minor Pentatonic
Let’s get specific. Here’s the standard A minor pentatonic Position 1 — the box at the 5th fret. I’ve added the most useful chromatic passing notes in between the scale tones.
Look at the extra notes. Between every pair of scale tones that are two frets apart, there’s a chromatic note sitting in the middle. That’s your passing tone.
For example, on the 6th string, you’ve got A at the 5th fret and C at the 8th fret. In between, there’s A# (6th fret) and B (7th fret). You can use those notes to connect A to C in a smooth run.
Same thing on the 5th string. D is at the 5th fret, E is at the 7th fret. The note in between — D# at the 6th fret — is your chromatic passing note.
Not every gap has a chromatic note. Some scale tones are only one fret apart, like the 4th and 5th frets on the 4th string (G to A). Those don’t need a passing tone — they’re already connected.
Where to Use Chromatic Passing Notes
Chromatic notes work best in runs and licks where you’re moving from one note to another. They add fluidity and sophistication.
Try this: play an ascending run on the 6th string. Start at A (5th fret), then A# (6th fret), B (7th fret), and land on C (8th fret). That’s a chromatic walk-up. It sounds smooth because each note leads naturally to the next.
Or try a descending run. Start at E (7th fret, 5th string), play D# (6th fret), then land on D (5th fret). You’ve used a chromatic passing note to connect two scale tones.
Chromatic notes also work when you’re connecting different positions of the scale. If you’re shifting from one box to another, you can use a chromatic note as a transition. It makes the shift sound musical instead of mechanical.
And here’s a big one: chromatic notes work great in bends and slides. Bend up from a chromatic note into a scale tone. Slide from one scale tone through a chromatic note to another scale tone. The movement gives your playing personality.
The Blue Note Revisited
If you’ve been following this series, you already know about the blue note — the flatted fifth. In A minor, that’s D# (or Eb, same note). It’s the note that turns your pentatonic scale into a full blues guitar scale.
The blue note is technically a chromatic note. It’s not in the pentatonic scale. But it’s used so often in blues that it’s basically honorary scale material. You can land on it, bend into it, use it as a pivot point. It’s more than just a passing tone.
The other chromatic notes aren’t like that. They’re true passing tones. You use them for motion, not for resolution.
Don’t Overdo It
Here’s the thing about chromatic notes: a little goes a long way. If you’re constantly using chromatic passing notes in every lick, it starts to sound like jazz or fusion, not blues. Blues is built on the pentatonic scale. The chromatic notes are seasoning, not the main ingredient.
Use them when you want to add a little extra movement or color. Use them to connect phrases. Use them to set up a strong resolution to a scale tone. But don’t use them all the time.
I’ve been playing for 45 years, and I still default to the pentatonic scale for most of my playing. The chromatic notes come in when I need them, not because I’m trying to show off. Quality before quantity, boys and girls.
Practice This
Start simple. Pick a two-note phrase in your pentatonic scale. Let’s say A to C on the 6th string (5th fret to 8th fret). Now add the chromatic notes in between. Play A, A#, B, C as a four-note run. Get that smooth, even sound.
Then try it in reverse. C, B, A#, A. Descending chromatic runs are just as useful as ascending ones.
Once that feels comfortable, try it on other strings. D to E on the 5th string. G to A on the 4th string. E to G on the 2nd string. Get the chromatic passing notes under your fingers everywhere on the fretboard.
Then start using them in licks. Don’t force it. Just be aware that those notes are there when you need them.
The Chromatic Scale Is a Tool, Not a Style
Some players think chromatic playing is a separate thing — something you do when you want to sound “advanced” or “outside.” That’s not how I think about it.
For me, chromatic notes are just part of the vocabulary. They’re notes that connect other notes. They’re not scary, they’re not forbidden, and they’re not some advanced technique you need years of study to understand.
You already know your pentatonic scale. The chromatic notes are just the frets in between. Use them when it sounds good. Don’t use them when it doesn’t. Trust your ear.
And if you’re not sure whether a chromatic note sounds good or not, the answer is simple: does it resolve to a scale tone? If it does, it works. If it’s just hanging there with nowhere to go, it doesn’t.
Putting It All Together
You now have the full blues scale toolkit. You know your pentatonic positions. You know where your tonic is. You can find your I-IV-V chord tones. And now you understand chromatic passing notes.
That’s everything. You don’t need more theory. You don’t need more shapes. You just need to practice what you’ve learned and start applying it to real music.
For the complete breakdown of how all these concepts work together, check out my full guide to the blues scale. It ties everything together and shows you how to use it in real blues progressions.
The guitar will keep you busy for the rest of your life. There’s always more to learn. But if you’ve got the pentatonic scale, the I-IV-V, and the chromatic passing notes, you’ve got what you need to play real blues. Everything else is just refinement.
Now go play something.