Chord Workbook for Guitar: Volume Two

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

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QThank you for the books you have put together. I am new to music theory and newly learning the acoustic guitar. I have taken one semester of guitar at a University and I am presently enrolled in Fingerstyle Guitar 2 and Guitar Chord Theory. I was looking at Amazon for additional books to supplement my learning, and I found your books. I have purchased the first and second volumes of the Chord Workbooks. The information contained within those two volumes about chords is impressive, and I'm sure as I grow in my development I will find it all indispensable. However, I was wondering if you have written a book that describes scales in detail? My Guitar Chord Theory class just started and there is quite a mix of beginners to advanced guitarists. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by their knowledge of guitar/music theory and my almost complete lack of it in comparison. I'd like to learn how to build scales, the best way to study them, and I'd like to play them with ease. I do have a workbook provided by the University that is helpful, but it seems written more for the student who has more knowledge than I. It doesn't explain which finger goes where when you start at the second position, or what does it mean to be at the second position, etc... It assumes that I will understand this already. I didn't skip any prerequisites for the class, so I feel I must need additional instruction. Can you tell me if a beginner will find it easy to grasp scales and how to perform them by purchasing your Music Theory for Guitar Vol. 2. I realize that I should probably purchase both Vol. 1 and 2, but I'm a little tight for spending money after buying all my books for 19 credits. I'd like to just get the one that will help me right now, and I'd get the others later. Also, A Big Metronome, is it helpful for sight reading guitar sheet music and understanding the timing between notes? I'd love to have some more practice with that as well. Thank you very much for your time, and I'll be looking forward to your response.
A Thanks for contacting me and thanks for buying my books. I think the 2nd volume of the Chord Workbook may be a little over your head to start with. But you should find that once you get comfortable with the chords in Chord Workbook Volume One the chords in Volume Two will be particularily helpful when you start playing with ensembles. The chords in Volume One are more commonly used in solo and duet playing. The chords in Volume Two are more useful when playing with an ensemble because in those situations one doesn't generally play any notes on the two lowest strings on the guitar. That's because the two low strings can interfere with the bass player's range and cause a muddy sound. Using chords based on the upper four strings keeps your sound more separate and discreet and can also help you work better with a piano player. As far as scales go I would highly recommend getting the 2nd volume of the music theory for guitar. This book gives you information on how to build 22 scales and also gives you exercises to help you memorize each scale. Also the muse-eek website gives you a bunch of audio examples so you can start applying these scales. If you need help on how to practice scales go to www.arnoldjazz.com and go to the music workshop. If you look under the scale section you will find 19 scales that you can download for free and these will give you the fingerings and how to play them all over the guitar neck. You definately should not get The Big Metronome. This book is for intermediate to advanced musicians looking to improve their internal concept of time. Obviously it would help you but I think for now you need to work on the basic mechanics of music. If you want to help your recognition of notes on the guitar via notes on a page I would recommend Single String Studies for guitar Volume One. This will give you exerices on one string at a time so you can concentrate on learning were each note is on each string in relation to the notes you see on a music staff. As far as rhythm goes I would recommend Rhythm Primer. This will not explain the timing between notes but it will give you simple rhythms that you can learn. If you run into a rhythm you don't understand, e-mail me or check the FAQ page where your question may have already been addressed. It sounds like you are very dedicated to learning music the right way and I applaude you for this. You are the type of person I have written my books for and I'm glad you have found them useful. I wish you great success and don't hesitate to contact me if you have more questions. By the way postions on the guitar neck refer to the fret that you place your index finger on. so... if you start playing something on the 5th fret with your first finger on the 5th fret you are playing in 5th position. I too was mystified when I fist started studying at Berklee, as to what they meant when they talked about position. but its really that simple---it's where you put your index finger that determines the position.
 
QI've recently purchased your Music Theory and Chord Theory workbooks and find them to be excellent sources for studying the guitar. However, I do need clarification on the "Cycle 5" Movement through the cycle 5, (C,F,Bb,Eb, etc.) is in 4th's (5 half steps) and not in 5th's as I previously assumed - Please explain.
Also, I know the study/practice pace will vary depending on the student's time, motivation, etc. but is there a recommended pace for your workbooks?
A Thanks for buying the books and I'm glad you are finding them useful. Cycle 5 can be thought of in two ways. The most common way is to think moving UP in 7 half steps i.e. C to G etc or 5 diatonic step in the key of C C i.e. C to D to E to F to G equals 5 steps or a 5th. But, you can also think of moving DOWN 7 half steps from C which would be the note F. Once again if you are in the key of C you could also move down 5 diatonic steps i.e. C to B to A to G to F which equals 5 steps or a 5th. The reason I use the cycle moving to down rather than up is because of the way music (particularly contemporary music) moves in many compositions, i.e. it modulates through keys moving DOWN the cycle 5 pattern. But, really either way will work when practicing your theory or chord work.
As far as how to work through the "Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume One and Two" I would learn maybe 10 to 15 chords moving them cycle 5 the way I recommend in the book. This will help to make sure you know these chords in all keys and will also help you memorize the notes on the two lowest strings on the guitar. The next step would be to skip to the progressions in the back of the book. By learning chord progressions you will hear how these chords relate to real music and it will help you to memorize each new chord. One of my main criticisms of other chord books is that you aren't given enough examples of how these chords are used and what they sound like in a musical example. I noticed through my many years of teaching that if you don't apply chords to a musical situation it is almost impossible to remember a chord voicing for a long period of time.
In "Music Theory Workbook for Guitar Volume One" I would recommend doing a page a day. Some of my students also do one example from 10 different pages a day because they feel it helps them remember chords better. The most important thing is to at least do some work everyday.
In "Music Theory Workbook for Guitar Volume Two" I would recommend taking one scale writing out the answers and then applying that scale to the midifile chord progressions found on the Muse-eek website. Once again some of my students do one example from 2 or 3 different scales a day because they feel it helps them remember scales better. The most important thing is to at least do some work everyday, and applying these scales to the midifile progressions is a must.
Really the bottom line of both theory books is to keep you "thinking the notes." Over time you will see a pattern developing which is OK as long as you know what the notes are and you are not relying on a pattern.
With all practicing, consistency is the key. Whatever amount you can do always try to practice every day rather than once every few days.
I wish you good luck and feel free to write back if anything I have said is unclear.
 
QI don't understand how transposition works with the guitar. I realize that guitar is a transposing instrument when you read a written part but I don't understand what that means. Could you explain it to me?
AWell this transposition stuff does get confusing doesn't it. Let me give you a couple of examples that will help you see how to write for the guitar and also understand what you are reading when you play guitar music.

First, let me say that the guitar is a transposing instrument and sounds an octave below where piano music is written.

So, let's say I'm composing a melody at the piano and I want the melody to be C, D and E starting on middle C on the piano. If I want the guitar to play this melody in the same octave that it is sounding on the piano I will have to write this on the 3rd space of the staff for C, moving to the 4th line for D and then the 4th space for E. As you can see the guitar is reading notes an octave above so that the sound will come out in the same octave of the piano.

Second, let say you are reading a guitar part and the first three notes are C (one ledger line below the treble clef or what would commonly thought of as middle C) to D space below lowest line and E first line of the treble clef. When you play the first note C this is not sounding in the same octave as middle C it is the pitch one octave below middle C.

As you can see from these two examples the guitar as far as pitch is concerned is a fairly low sounding instrument - (the low e-string sounds way down an octave and a minor sixth below middle C) but with a very broad range of notes; at least four octaves. This actually is one of the reasons they made the guitar a transposing instrument because it would need both the bass and the treble clef to accomodate all the notes on the instrument. Rather than have guitar written with a grand staff (grand staff is when you use both the bass and treble clefs together, like piano) they just use the treble clef but make the guitar a transposing instrument. It's really ultimately easier to do it that way. (--you don't want to have to read grand staff, do you?)

Single String Studies is written for guitar, therefor it is already transposed into the treble clef for you . But remember if you read middle C in an exercise, you are playing the 3rd fret of the A string and it is actually sounding an octave below this note. If you are playing along with a pianist and looking over their shoulder at treble clef, you will have to play an octave higher on your instrument if you want to play the same pitch and blend with the piano..

Hopefully this helps you understand and picture how this system works.
 
QI have a question about a pretty specific topic I suppose. My main interest is jazz and I am in search of a work book type of text book that would teach harmonic theory as used in jazz (swing to Bop primarily) and then present the reader with a number ( maybe 5-10) of chord progressions to be analyzed in terms of Roman Numeral function, say I vi ii V7 patterns and others etc..., and also song structure AABA, ABAC, etc..., modulations to new key centers, and also chord function possibly, say Tonic, Dominant, Sub Dominant, etc...this also could include the recognition and use of substitutions within these progression exercises or quizzes. Lastly, an answer key would be provided at the back of the book, accompanied by an explanation of the authors analysis for the reader to check his analysis against.
AI'm sorry to say that at this time I don't have exactly the book you are describing. I have been planning an analysis book like that, but it's still only in the planning stages.
I will say that "Chord Workbook Volume One" and "Two" discusses possible reharmonization methods and are a great tool for learning how to reharmonize a jazz chord progression-- but I haven't included an analysis of each of the 36 progressions found in Volume One or the 24 found in "Volume Two."
One thing you should consider though, is that while analyzing chord progressions is essential to understanding how harmony works, you really need to be able to "hear" how these progressions are functioning. Therefore ear training is an integral companion to really understanding how "you" hear a progression. This is done through developing relative pitch ear training. I'm not talking about learning intervals, I'm talking about being able to hear 4 to 6 note structures moving from one to another and hearing each voice and knowing how it is functioning in a key and when these progressions modulate. Getting to that point is a long process but I consider it to be key to a solid, working understanding of harmony.
Check out the ear training books listed on the Muse Eek site; both the listening and the singing books are about building an understanding of how you "hear" a progression. If you need more help deciding where to start with the ear training method let me know. In the mean time I will keep you posted regarding that analysis book.
 
Q I left music as a professional classical guit player & teacher to raise a family. I keep practicing and learning but with limited time. I am very interested in your books. Haven't bought any yet. I am very interested in learning to comp without bass and drums to work with singers and with a clarinetist. I listen to a lot of jazz, and have a decent classical right hand technique. I work at learning voicings but need a way to put it together. Can you suggest which of your books to get to help develop a good comping ability? Do you offer qty discounts? Truthfully, all your books sound interesting.
A I look at comping from a few different angles. Within any given musical style you could look at playing chords in the following ways

1. Knowing different chord voicings.
2. Knowing different possible rhythms that could be used.
3. Being able to add or subtract chords to create diversity
(reharmonization)
4. Developing alternate possible style of comping within a given style.
(i.e. chords and bass at the same time)

I have address each of these in different ways in different books.

"Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume One" gives you the common chords a professional musician uses. You probably know most of these already. But, the back of the book gives you 36 chord progression which have been reharmonized using the techniques I layout in a reharmonization section found before the progressions. So this book will help you develop number 3 from the list above.

"Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume Two" gives you all the upper 4 string voicings which are great for chord melody playing. You once again probably know a lot of these but this book gives you all the possibilities within 5 frets. The back of this book gives you 24 chord progression which have been reharmonized used the techniques I layout in a reharmonization section found before the progressions. This reharmonization method is different from book one but it does use the same progressions as book one and then reharmonizes the reharmonizations. This book will also help you develop number 3 from the list above.

"Comping Styles for Guitar Volume Two FUNK" takes the progression found in Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume One and plays them in a funk style. This funk comping uses a bass and chord funk style so you could lets say accompany a vocalist with a funky style of chord comping. I find this book to be very useful for developing alternate ways to comping and create the feeling of a whole rhythm section.

"Guitar Clinic" is a book which covers many of subjects I present at clinics. This book contains one of the possible bass and chord comping style that jazz players commonly use in duet playing. I think you would find that half of this book is stuff you already know or is very much pitched to a beginner but the other half would contain important information you could use. Below is a list of some of it's other content:

1. Exercises from my "Rhythm Series" of books which are basically sight reading books to develop your rhythm. (If your interested in developing your sight reading or honing in on your rhythm the rhythm books will kick your ...)

2. Excerpts from two theory workbooks which are meant mostly for beginning to intermediate students to develop their understanding of chord building and scale construction. (This would not be a section that would apply to you)

3. How to read music. (This would not be a section that would apply to you)

4. Modal sequencing (developmental exercises for playing scales which gives you a good way to develop a through command of scales on the guitar)

5. Approach Note Theory (developmental exercises for playing bebop lines)

6. Hexatonic Improvisation (developmental exercises for using these scales)

If you have a more questions about the books let me know. If you want to order any of these you would get a better deal by ordering them direct from muse-eek publishing company. Some of these book they have "seconds" of (these are books that are nearly new or just have a typo or other small problem but are just fine) Many of these are half price. You can go to www.muse-eek.com website to look at all the books and see what they have for seconds. I know sometimes they have seconds that aren't listed so ask. I know they have the Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume One as a second but send them an e-mail at info@muse-eek.com after you check out the site and tell them what your interested. Depending on how many books you get I would think they probably will give you a discount. I'm not sure what that would be but certainly ask them if they will give you one.

As a personal recommendation I would check out the ear training books. You should probably start with Ear Training One Note Advanced. A development of your ears is of utmost importance in your development as a musician. Of all the concepts and things I've worked on this has advanced my ability more than anything.
Hopes this help you understand the books. Thanks again for contacting me.
 
QI have been on a quest trying to find advanced books on the subject of analyzing non diatonic and modal chord progressions. I have recently become fascinated by the music of The Beatles and Elton John. Both of these artists tend to utilize complex chord progressions that seem to verge off on any number of directions with little regard to the key. I guess what I am looking for is a method to help me understand and then implement these concepts into my own music. I am not really interested in chord shapes and formation as much as advanced theory on creating chord progressions, modulations, cadences, why some chord progressions sound good, etc. My search led me to Stone Dragon's website where he references a couple of your books in the course of some very good articles. However when I checked the table of contents at Amazon it seemed to me that they focussed more on chord construction than the subject matter I am really interested in. Maybe I am wrong. Can you recommend a book or resource to help me in my pursuit of knowledge. Any advice would be most appreciated.
AChord Workbooks Volume One and Two each contain a section on chord reharmonization. Chord Workbook one covers harmonic based reharmonization and Chord Workbook two covers the use of chord scales to reharmonize progressions. There are also 36 chord progressions supplied as examples in Chord Workbook Volume One and 24 examples in Chord Workbook volume two. Currently these sections of the book are not available independently. Within the next 6 months or so we will be doing a "Print on the Fly" situation where you can buy sections of my books and kind of create your own book which will be bound and sent to you. At that time you would be able to just get the information you need. My suggestion would be to study the aforementioned books and examples and then apply this information to the Beatles and Elton John progressions. If in some cases you still can't figure out the music theory behind these progressions send them to me and I'll help you out.
 
QI have previously studied classical guitar, especially Spanish master's pieces by Tarrega, Torres and Segovia, and some Brazilians like Villalobos, obviously as an interpreter. Needless to say, in a pretty much mechanistic way since I feel my knowledge in music theory is rather too modest, not to say mediocre.

I've read outstanding reviews about your accomplished musicianship and teaching approaches and therefore I would like to get some advise from you; I am planning to purchase some of your publications and in face of your prolific editorial production I would like to count on your proficient advise to choose the right ones for me. As I said before, I have some background, I don't have huge playing limitations, in terms of my playing skills I would rank myself as an intermediate-to-advanced amateur player. I am looking forward to getting an in-depth understanding of basics in chord construction, classification and terminology, intervals and scales over chords concepts. Needless to say, exercises on modes and scales are always welcome as well as other concepts not mentioned above.
AI would recommend the following books for you.

Music Theory Workbook for Guitar Volumes One and Two
Chord Workbook for Guitar Volumes One and Two
Ear Training One Note Complete
Fanatic's Guide to Sight Singing and Ear Training
Guitar Technique Ebook

If you let me know the amount of time you have to practice I will help you with a practice schedule. If you want me to do this also let me know when throughout the day you might have 10 to 15 minutes of down time that you could do ear training exercises with a discman.

You need to go to www.arnoldjazz.com and the music workshop and download the 19 scales. You want to learn a new scale each week. You are going to first work your way through all the C modes so first C major all positions then C dorian positions etc. Remember we are learning note names and degrees here not just fingering positions. I would pay close attention to your technique and look in a mirror to check out your hand. Reference the Guitar Technique book and be anal about this because the more relaxed and close to the neck your hand is the better you are going to play.

You also want to spend time playing/improvising with these scales. Use the midifiles and progressions connected to the book or create your own. Download the applying music theory article from the member's area this will give you other ideas on sequencing scales.

PS Guitar Clinic would also be a good book because the back of the book contains information on 3 very important concepts of improvisation.
 
Q Lets say each of the books/CDs of yours that I purchased are classes I am taking at a University. In which order would my classes be and for how long? I presently have all the time in the world for music, but unless I have a daily road map I sometimes get loose discipline. With the One Note and Fanatics I currently do each of them for 10 minutes one after the other for 8-10 times a day because I can only take them in small doses. So just insert 20 wherever in my routine that you think would be good to work on them.

I OWN:
1. One-Note Complete
2. Fanatics Guide
3. Music Theory Workbook One
4. Chord Workbooks One and Two
5. Rhythm Primer
6. Single String Studies
7. 19 Scales off of Arnoldjazz.com
** a lot of different style sheet music
AYou want to build up to 6 to 10 hours a day. I would suggest doing this over a years worth of time in order to change your current life style and develop the mental and physical conditioning needed to work this hard. The schedule is below:

1. One-Note Complete and Fanatics Guide: Do short 10 minute practice periods 10 minutes for each book, alternating throughout the day.

2. Music Theory Workbook One: Work up to doing 5 pages a day. I'd break this up into a few different sessions each day

3. Chord Workbook One: Learn one new chord progression a day with associated chords. Play both the exercises with notes only and with chord symbols. Also, work your way through the book learning all chords cycle 5. I'd work through 5 to 6 new chords per week.

4. Chord Workbook Two: Learn one new chord type per week. Be able to play all the chords up and down the neck for each chord type. After completing this you will then work on the chord progressions.

5. Rhythm Primer: Follow directions in book. Play a new page each day. Try to work the tempo up as fast as you can using directions in book.

6. Single String Studies: One page per week moving to a new string, same key, each week. Do not look at the guitar neck as you play, try to feel where the notes are. Use midifiles to check your accuracy.

7. You should really have: Rhythms Volume One and Two and LINES along with a lot of different style sheet music to complete your sight reading studies. I want you to read one hour a day from the books and various sheet music. Download Beat Reading from the member's area, rhythm studies, and apply to various pieces of sheet music each day. Spend about 15 minutes doing this.

8. Learn the 19 Scales off of Arnoldjazz.com in all keys. I want you to learn all 19 scales in one key each week. Hopefully you have checked out Guitar Technique ebook so you don't go through all of this with bad technique and then have to start over later.

9. You need to apply the scales to real music. Make loops or vamps each day and apply the scales. Also download the Applying Music Theory from the Muse Eek member's area for other scale ideas to try when you improvise. You should spend at least 2 hours a day applying the scales.

Remember to build into this so you don't hurt yourself. Again please check out the ebook guitar technique so you don't do all this work in vain.
 
QI'm an intermediate guitar player trying to learn jazz. Want to comp better. Know a lot of chords, some jazz blues chord progressions, some rhythm changes. Which chord book would you recommend for me? I've already bought quite a few books.
AWell I can think of a few books that might be of interest to you. I'll list them and tell you what additional information you can get from these books that I think is important.

Chord Workbook for Guitar: Volume One

Has 36 chord progressions in the back of the book. 12 different progressions one in each key for blues, minor blues and rhythm changes. I use a reharmonization concept with these progressions that is quite important to know so you can create your own progressions later on. I give an explanation of the reharmonization method right before the chord progressions. There are also MP3's of the progressions on the www.muse-eek.com Web site so you can make sure you are playing with the right feel. The chords covered in this book are all the chords with roots on the 5th and 6th strings that a professional guitarist should know.

Chord Workbook for Guitar: Volume Two

Covers all the voicings on the upper 4 strings that can be played within 5 frets. Great book but will take a long time to work through because of the quantity of chords. Also contains 12 keys of major and minor blues. These are the same progressions as Volume One but have been reharmonized again with another reharmonization technique. I give an explanation of the reharmonization method right before the chord progressions. This book also contains a comprehensive study of which scales work over which chord and the passing diminished scales, which I don't think you will find anywhere but here.

Comping Styles for Guitar Volume Two: Funk

Takes the progressions found in Chord Workbook for Guitar: Volume One and plays them with a funk feel. Very good for developing a funk feel and learning to read 16th note funky guitar riffs. Contains an audio CD so you can hear each example

Accompaniment, Volume 1: Learning to Play Bass and Chords Simultaneously on the Guitar

This is an ebook which teaches you how to play chords and bass lines at the same time. A simple book but this technique is very useful when playing duets.
 
QThanks for getting back on your books. Does the volume two workbook come with a CD? BTW, I listened to the mp3's on the blues and they sounded very much like the jazz blues progression that I either learned from the internet or from Steve Khan's book which I transposed to all 12 keys. The minor blues mp3 sounds like a progression that I use for minor. I learned a rhythm progression out of Galbraith's book. Does it sound as though I should go for volume 2 and then the funk book?
AIf you understand how to reharmonize and build your own chord progressions using the chord reharmonization techniques then I would say just get Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume Two. If you just have the ability to play those type of progressions but don't understand the reharmonization technique involved to make those progressions then I'd say get Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume One too. Remember the chord reharmonization theory is used for both chording and soloing so if you don't know this information you are leaving out a major part of jazz theory.
 
QWhat are the possible tensions/avoid tones for:
C7b5
C7#5
CMaj7#11
C6
C-6

They weren't in the chord workbook. I imagine these chords have tensions similar to some of the other thirteen chords (Cmaj7 and Cmaj7#11) but I am working out the list with melodic/harmonic possibilities and I want to do it right.
AThe Tensions are as follows:

C7b5 tensions b9, 9,#9, b13, 13. 4th is avoid remember there is no natural 5.

C7#5 tensions b9, 9, #9. 4th is avoid remember there is no natural 5th or 6th.

CMaj7#11 tensions 9, 13. Avoid is 4 usually not part of scale anyway.

C6 tensions 9, #11, 6. Avoid is 4.

C-6 tensions 9, 11, 6. No avoid.
 
QI am trying to improve my skills to build up and make my melodies and solos more compeling! I need some exercises and advanced theory! I play a mix of bluegrass, funk and rock! How can you help?
AI'll do my best to help you. You might want to think about the limited amount of information you have given me to go on. The relevance of my comments are always inversely proportionate to the amount of knowledge I have about a students past education and specific goals.

First if you don't know the notes on your instrument or how to build and find complex chords on the guitar I would recommend Music Theory Workbook for Guitar Volume One.

Second if you don't know all the 23 scales most used in improvisation I would recommend Music Theory Workbook for Guitar Volume Two.

Third I would recommend you start working on some ear training so any advanced theory you might learn isn't just a mental process but is accompanied by an ability to also hear these relationships in a musical situation. For this I would recommend Ear Training One Note Complete and Fanatic's Guide to SIght Singing and Ear Training.

Fourth if you don't know all the chords on the guitar and how they are used in a musical situation I would recommend the Chord Workbooks for Guitar Volumes One and Two. These books also contain advanced theories of reharmonization which is one of the corner stones of what I anyway would call advanced music theory.

Overall most of my books are not stylistic. For instance the Music Theory Workbooks are not specifically for a rock, jazz or bluegrass player. While certainly idioms use more of one type of scale or one set of chord types I'm figuring you will get this information by transcribing solos etc. from CDs. My books concentrate on teaching the basic building blocks of music which you can then apply to the style of music you are interested in.
 
QWould you explain the concept of avoid notes more in depth than you do in your books. For example, when do you and when do you not use these notes? How do you go about practicing scales in regard to avoid notes?
AMost scales contain one or more avoid notes but there are some scales that contain no avoid notes. You can find a complete list of the avoid notes in either Music Theory Workbook for Guitar Volume Two or Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume Two. These books cover the avoid notes found in 23 of the most common scales used in improvisation. There are of course many, many more scales that could be used and many of those would have avoid notes. It is hard to make generalizations about avoid notes because there always seems to be an example that goes against any rules you want to apply. In general it is common to find avoid notes as notes that are 1/2 step above a chord tone and it is also common that these notes feel like they want to resolve. As far as practicing scales you should know what the avoid notes are but remember an avoid note can be played just as much as any other note it just isn't a note you want to end a melody on because it feels like it wants to resolve. On the other hand there are many cool techniques you can use by not using the avoid notes. Take a look at the reharmonization techniques in Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume Two or take a look at the Hexatonic method I use in my compositions by reading

MY MUSIC: Explorations in the Application of 12 Tone Techniques to Jazz Composition and Improvisation

Sorry for being so general about avoid notes but you could write an entire book about their use. I think the books I mentioned give you some very interesting and common ways that musicians use avoid notes. I also have a series of books coming out in few months that will cover more uses of avoid notes. This series is called the New York Guitar Method.