I found the Major D Scales in standard tuning at www.traditionalmusic.co.uk. On the E string it lists 0 2 3 5 7 9 10 9 7 5 3 2 0. My question is which finger to I use for frets 9, and 10? Do I just slide my little finger down the fretboard for any frets past fret 8? On the E Major Scale it lists frets 9, 11 and 12. What is the general rule? Thank you for your help.
Hey Michael! There's more than one way to shift, as you can imagine. You can play the top notes by sliding your pinky, but the option I use there is to forego the pinky when playing D scale on up the E string. Instead I play 0 - 2 - 3 - 5 using index, middle and ring fingers, and shift my index to 7 in order to play 7 - 9 - 10 then come back down. When I play the D scale only as far as I can reach in first position, I play the B note at 7th fret with pinky, but when I plan to shift the position up high, I do it as I described. I don't think there are special rules for this stuff. On shifting positions, here's something else I do. I started a month or two back performing this "mini-practice" every time I tune my mandolin. Once I get a pair of strings in tune, I play the entire scale on one string, shifting up the neck. Example, on G string I play 0 - 2 - 4 - 5 with index, middle ring fingers, shifting to 7 - 9 - 11 - 12 with index, middle, ring and pinky. I do that for each string pair once it's tuned. I focus on: 1. listening to be sure they sound in unison 2. making the shift while maintaining steady pulse or beat 3. getting the notes to sound clean 4. using light touch (keeps from pulling strings sharp and helps to get clean notes, especially on the high frets) I think it's a good "mini-exercise" to help get comfortable with shifting positions.
As Mark said, Michael, no rules. If you are playing a two-octave D major scale, you might try open-1-2-3 (finger numbers, not frets) on the D string, then 0-1-2-1 on the A, shifting up to play the D with your first finger. Then play the second octave 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, the four-finger closed position fingering. This is third position. As someone who has played violin/viola for decades, I would strongly suggest learning to use different positions on all strings, not just to reach higher notes on the E course. You will find that certain passages just lie better in a position other than first, avoiding awkward string crossings. It also makes oddball keys easier. If you just need to play a C, extending your fourth finger works fine, assuming the reach works for you. Everyone's hands are different. Past that, you'll want to move your whole hand higher on the neck so you can use all four fingers.
