Shapes & positions

System Shape BPM

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• Root–fifth — groove power shapes. Move them under any chart root.
• Root–octave — chorus thickness; still single-line friendly.
• Major one-octave boxes — three doors for major (E-string root, A-string root, C example).
• Minor pentatonic boxes — five overlapping doors (guitar-style), four strings.
• Hand positions — 4-fret cages (I / V / VII / IX). Chromatic walks train the fretting hand like ukulele position work.

1. Pick a start fret for finger 1 — that is the position.
2. Stay in a 4-fret box unless the shape explicitly shifts.
3. Shift the whole hand to the next door; do not stretch the pinky into pain.
4. Mute unused strings — shapes only work if the rest of the neck is dead.

Same root A — five positions. Learn box 1 clean, then tour 1→2→3.

Box 1 (5–8)          Box 2 (7–10)
G|------5-7-8-       G|------7-8-10-
D|----5-7-----       D|----7-9------
A|--5-7-------       A|--7-10-------
E|-5-8--------       E|-8-10--------

Door A · E-string root 3     Door B · A-string root 10
G|------------0-2-           G|------------10-12-
D|--------0-2-----           D|--------7-9-10----
A|----0-2-3-------           A|--10--------------
E|-3--------------           E|------------------

Play each ascending/descending. Then connect: end of door A → shift into door B.

Take root–fifth at frets 0, 3, 5, 7. For each shape, play only:

• Root on beat 1, fifth on beat 3 — four bars.
• Then 8ths on the root only — four bars.
• Then gallop cell on the root — two bars + space.

Same shape, three song jobs. See Write grooves.

Short gym blocks: Drills · positions. Longer tours: Exercises · shape tours.

• Collecting five boxes before one is even.
• Looking only at TAB — look at the lit neck, then eyes away.
• Playing shapes with ringing open strings you forgot to mute.

Slap & pop · Position drills · Shape exercises · Scales · Write grooves