uke puke
Active member
the short answer: yes.
for the most part, yes you would play only the notes of the C scale because the chords being played are in the key of C. but there are instances where you can play a sharp/flat note in there. many times you can bend a note (pushing the string up to change the pitch) to make it a half tone higher and it will sound good even though that note does not fall in the key.
one of my guidelines when i improvise a solo is to make sure that each note that falls on an actual beat is in the key. between those beats, i can pretty much play whatever i want. but thats just my own style. it is neither right or wrong.
but having a good foundation will open this up to you. so yes, start out with only the C scale when playing in the key of C. as you become proficient, experiment more and more with what sounds good to your ear.
Awesome. Thanks for the quick response. Your doing us all a huge favor.