Major scales

These scales have a major third (E in the key of C), which makes them feel happy
or bright.

Major scale

Happy; can be majestic or sentimental

when slow. The white keys on the
piano. Examples: “Mary Had A Little
Lamb,” “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.”

Mixolydian mode

Bluesy, rock; can also be

exotic/modal. Play over C7 chord.
Same pitches as F major. Example:
“Tomorrow Never Knows” by the
Beatles.
Lydian mode

Ethereal, dreamy, futuristic. Same

pitches as G major. Example:
“Possibly Maybe” by Björk (from the
line “As much as I definitely enjoy
solitude…”)

Lydian dominant mode

Also known as the overtone scale

or acoustic scale, because it is
close to the first seven pitches in
the natural overtone series. Same
pitches as the G melodic minor
scale and the F-sharp/G-flat
altered scale.
Phrygian dominant mode

Exotic, Middle Eastern, Jewish.

Same pitches as F harmonic
minor. Example: “Hava Nagila.”

Harmonic major scale

Majestic, mysterious. “Lord Of

The Rings” feeling.
Minor Scales
These scales have a flat third (E-flat in the key of C), which gives them a darker
and more tragic feel.
Natural minor scale (Aeolian mode)

Sentimental, tragic. Same

pitches as E-flat major.

Dorian mode

Hip, sophisticated, jazzy. Same

pitches as B-flat major. Example:
“So What” by Miles Davis.
Harmonic minor scale

Tragic, exotic, Middle Eastern.

Melodic minor scale

Mysterious, jazzy, very dark.

Example: sixties Coltrane. See
a blog post about melodic minor.
Phrygian mode

Spanish/Flamenco. Same pitches as

A-flat major.

Locrian mode

Very dark and unstable. Use

over C half-diminished chords.
Same pitches as C-sharp/D-flat
major and B-flat natural minor.
Neither major nor minor
Blues scale

Bluesy, obviously. Works great

over major and minor chords. C
minor pentatonic with sharp
fourth/flat fifth added.

Altered scale

Use over a C7 chord to make it

sound very intellectual and
jazzy. Same pitches as C-
sharp/D-flat melodic minor.
Pentatonics
Pentatonic scales have five notes. The blues scale is the minor pentatonic plus the
flat fifth.

Major pentatonic scale

Joyful; widely used in world

and folk music. Major scale
with 4th and 7th removed.
Same pitches as A minor
pentatonic. Here’s a blog post
about playing pentatonics on
guitar.

Minor pentatonic scale

Widely used in rock, world and

folk music. Minor scale with 2nd
and 6th removed. Same pitches
as E-flat major pentatonic.
Here’s a blog post about playing
pentatonics on guitar.
Synthetic Scales
These scales are based on regular, symmetric patterns.

Chromatic scale

All of the piano keys.

Freefalling, anxiety-producing.

Whole tone scale

Dreamy, underwater. Every

alternating key on the piano.
Same pitches as D, E, F-
sharp, G-sharp and A-sharp
whole tone scales. Example:
Background parts in the
Simpsons theme song.
Octatonic scale

Dark, mysterious. Same pitches

as E-flat, G-flat and A
octatonic scales. Examples:
movies about Dracula.

Hexatonic scale

Alternating minor third, half

step. Wonderfully exotic.