Scales › Mixolydian ♭2

Mixolydian ♭2 scale

dominant with a colorful b9

7 notes

RC b9Db 3E 11F 5G 13A b7Bb

guide tones (3rd & 7th — the heart of the sound) avoid (strong clash)

C · Db · E · F · G · A · Bb

Play in the key of

Mixolydian ♭2 on the guitar: the fretboard diagram

Here is the Mixolydian ♭2 scale laid out across the whole neck, from fret 0 to fret 15. The guide tones (3rd and 7th) are highlighted — they're what makes the scale's color sing. Use the key selector above to shift the shape along the neck and find the positions in your key.

E 3 11 5 13 b7 R b9 3 11 5 B R b9 3 11 5 13 b7 R b9 G 5 13 b7 R b9 3 11 5 13 b7 D 3 11 5 13 b7 R b9 3 11 A 13 b7 R b9 3 11 5 13 b7 R E 3 11 5 13 b7 R b9 3 11 5 0123456789101112131415

What color?

Mixolydian whose second is lowered (b9): a diatonic dominant tinted with a single soft alteration on the ninth. A rare color from harmonic major, simpler than the altered scale while still slipping in a b9 tension.

Origin & history

The fifth mode of the harmonic major: a dominant with a minor ninth. Mostly a theoretical tool for coloring a dominant chord.

Which chords to play it on?

Outside the functional consensus: this is an exploration color. Lay it over a vamp or a held chord to tint your improvisation with an unexpected flavor, rather than inside a cadence.

Sibling modes

The Mixolydian ♭2 scale is one of the modes of the harmonic major : it shares exactly the same notes as the modes below, but built on a different degree of the parent scale (harmonic major (Ionian ♭6)).

harmonic major (Ionian ♭6) major with a bittersweet ♭6 Dorian ♭5 Dorian with diminished fifth Phrygian ♭4 Phrygian with lowered eleventh Lydian ♭3 (Lydian diminished) diminished minor Lydian Lydian augmented ♯2 exotic Lydian augmented ♯2 Locrian ♭♭7 diminished Locrian bb7

Try it in a real chart

Paste a chord chart into the tool: Pentania tells you, chord by chord, when this scale fits — and what other colors are open to you. Open the tool →