About the A flat Major Blues scale
A flat Major Blues is used for blues, country, gospel and rock and roll. Think of it as the major pentatonic with a blue note added, bright but soulful.
Its notes are A♭, B♭, C♭, C, E♭, and F. The formula is W H H 1½ W 1½. It is the second mode of F Minor Blues.
Also called Major Pentatonic Blues.
In A♭ Major Blues, the open string sounds B. A guitarist finds the lowest A♭ at the 4th fret of the low E string. Placed at the first fret, a capo lets A♭ Major Blues be played with G-shape fingerings.
Positions
Playable shapes for this scale up the neck. Tap any note to hear it.
6-position system
6 four-fret boxes, one per scale degree, each a single hand position with almost no shifting. The jazz and classical way, from William Leavitt's Berklee method.
Notes and intervals
| 1 | AbA♭ | Root |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | BbB♭ | Major 2nd |
| 3 | CbC♭ | Minor 3rd |
| 4 | CC | Major 3rd |
| 5 | EbE♭ | Perfect 5th |
| 6 | FF | Major 6th |
| Steps | W H H 1½ W 1½ |
|---|---|
| Semitones | 2-1-1-3-2-3 |
| Degrees | 1 2 ♭3 3 5 6 |
Shapes
Chromatic
Circle of Fifths
Related scales
Major Blues in other keys
Modes
The same notes, starting on a different note.
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