Bb Phrygian Dominant: A Fretboard Guide
The Bb Phrygian dominant scale is Bb, Cb, D, Eb, F, Gb and Ab, with Cb standing in for B natural. Its sharp twin A# Phrygian dominant needs double sharps, so Bb is the key to read from.
Play the root on the 6th fret of the low E string, or the 1st fret of the A string, where it sits closest to the nut. Eb harmonic minor supplies the notes.
Play the Bb phrygian dominant scale
Use the step menu in the player to switch between the single-string run and the box shapes.
Notes of the Bb phrygian dominant scale
| Note | Degree | Interval | Semitones from root |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bb | 1 | Root | 0 |
| Cb | b2 | Minor 2nd | 1 |
| D | 3 | Major 3rd | 4 |
| Eb | 4 | Perfect 4th | 5 |
| F | 5 | Perfect 5th | 7 |
| Gb | b6 | Minor 6th | 8 |
| Ab | b7 | Minor 7th | 10 |
Structure
Bb phrygian dominant scale notes:
How the phrygian dominant scale is built:
The phrygian dominant scale is built from the degrees 1 b2 3 4 5 b6 b7, which gives the step pattern H-W+H-H-W-H-W-W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Counting in semitones from the root: 0, 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10. That makes it a 7-note scale.
It is mode 5 of the Harmonic Minor Scale, so both scales share the same notes from a different starting point.
It is also known as Jewish Scale, Ahava Raba, Freygish and Spanish Phrygian.
Bb Phrygian 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 phrygian dominant scale
Stacking thirds on each degree of the scale gives these chords.
Related modes
These scales share the same notes as the phrygian dominant scale, starting from a different degree.
The phrygian dominant scale in other keys
Created by
Giancarlo is a musician (teaching guitar since 2000), software engineer, AI consultant and published researcher
