Bb Lydian Dominant: Fretboard Guide
Bb, C, D, E, F, G and Ab spell the Bb Lydian dominant scale. The E natural is what separates it from Bb Mixolydian, which has Eb.
Place the root on the 6th fret of the low E string or the 1st fret of the A string. The notes are F melodic minor from its fourth degree, and a guide to playing scales over chords shows how to apply them.
Play the Bb lydian dominant scale
Use the step menu in the player to switch between the single-string run and the box shapes.
Notes of the Bb lydian dominant scale
| Note | Degree | Interval | Semitones from root |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bb | 1 | Root | 0 |
| C | 2 | Major 2nd | 2 |
| D | 3 | Major 3rd | 4 |
| E | #4 | Tritone | 6 |
| F | 5 | Perfect 5th | 7 |
| G | 6 | Major 6th | 9 |
| Ab | b7 | Minor 7th | 10 |
Structure
Bb lydian dominant scale notes:
How the lydian dominant scale is built:
The lydian dominant scale is built from the degrees 1 2 3 #4 5 6 b7, which gives the step pattern W-W-W-H-W-H-W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Counting in semitones from the root: 0, 2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10. That makes it a 7-note scale.
It is mode 4 of the Melodic Minor Scale, so both scales share the same notes from a different starting point.
It is also known as Lydian b7 and Overtone Scale.
Bb Lydian Dominant Scale Guitar Patterns
Static diagrams of every position shown in the player above.
On one string (A)
Box pattern — position 1
Box pattern — position 2
Box pattern — position 3
Box pattern — position 4
Box pattern — position 5
3 notes per string — position 1
3 notes per string — position 2
3 notes per string — position 3
3 notes per string — position 4
3 notes per string — position 5
Chords in the Bb lydian dominant scale
Stacking thirds on each degree of the scale gives these chords.
Related modes
These scales share the same notes as the lydian dominant scale, starting from a different degree.
The lydian dominant scale in other keys
Created by
Giancarlo is a musician (teaching guitar since 2000), software engineer, AI consultant and published researcher
