Common
About the A flat Phrygian scale
A flat Phrygian is used for flamenco, metal riffs and film cues that need menace or mystery. Think of it as a dark, exotic minor with a tense half-step right above the root. It is A♭ Natural Minor with the second lowered.
Its notes are A♭, B♭♭, C♭, D♭, E♭, F♭, and G♭. The formula is H W W W H W W. It is the third mode of F♭ Major.
Also called Inverted Major and Bhairavi.
The open-string notes E, A, and B all sit inside the scale. A guitarist finds the lowest A♭ at the 4th fret of the low E string. A capo at the first fret brings A♭ Phrygian within reach of G-shape fingerings.
Positions
Playable shapes for this scale up the neck. Tap any note to hear it.
CAGED
Five shapes, each anchored to a chord form you already know, the pop and rock default that ties your scales to your chords. The outlined notes are that chord, so you can see the C, A, G, E, and D shapes inside the scale.
3NPS
3NPS stands for 3 notes per string. It lays the scale out in seven even shapes for rock and metal lead, and favors speed because the picking pattern stays consistent across every string.
7-position system
7 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.
Chords in the key of A flat Phrygian
Expand a chord to see how to play it.
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Seventh chords in A flat Phrygian
The four-note version of each chord, richer and jazzier.
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Position 1 of 4
Progressions in A flat Phrygian
Tap any chord to hear it, or play the whole progression.
Common
Notes and intervals
| 1 | AbA♭ | Root |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | BbbB♭♭ | Minor 2nd |
| 3 | CbC♭ | Minor 3rd |
| 4 | DbD♭ | Perfect 4th |
| 5 | EbE♭ | Perfect 5th |
| 6 | FbF♭ | Minor 6th |
| 7 | GbG♭ | Minor 7th |
| Steps | H W W W H W W |
|---|---|
| Semitones | 1-2-2-2-1-2-2 |
| Degrees | 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 |
Shapes
Chromatic
Circle of Fifths
Related scales
Phrygian in other keys
C Phrygian scaleD flat Phrygian scaleD Phrygian scaleE flat Phrygian scaleE Phrygian scaleF Phrygian scaleG flat Phrygian scaleG Phrygian scaleA Phrygian scaleB flat Phrygian scaleB Phrygian scale
Modes
The same notes, starting on a different note.
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