Guitar scale · exotic
Ab Major Locrian Scale
Locrian with a major 2nd and a major 3rd: 1 2 3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7. Mode 5 of Neapolitan Major, also called Arabian.
Tap any note to hear it.
Ab Major Locrian Scale tab: all 5 positions
Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.
e|-----------------------------4-6-8-| B|-------------------------5-7-------| G|-------------------5-6-7-----------| D|-------------4-6-8-----------------| A|-------4-5-7-----------------------| E|-4-6-8-----------------------------|
e|-------------------------------6-8-9-10-| B|---------------------------7-9----------| G|---------------------6-7-9--------------| D|--------------6-8-10--------------------| A|----------7-9---------------------------| E|-6-8-9-10-------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------8-9-10-12-| B|--------------------------------9-11-----------| G|---------------------------9-11----------------| D|----------------8-10-11-12---------------------| A|-----------9-11--------------------------------| E|-8-9-10-12-------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------12-14-| B|----------------------------------13-14-15-------| G|-------------------------11-13-15----------------| D|----------------11-12-14-------------------------| A|-------11-13-15----------------------------------| E|-12-14-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------14-16-| B|----------------------------------14-15-17-------| G|-------------------------13-15-17----------------| D|-------------------14-16-------------------------| A|-------13-15-16-17-------------------------------| E|-14-16-------------------------------------------|
How to play Ab Major Locrian on guitar
Find the root first: Ab is at fret 4 on the low E string and fret 11 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every Ab on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (3, ♭5, ♭7), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.
Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 4–8. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.
Ab Major Locrian is also written G# Major Locrian: G# A# B# C# D E F#. The frets are the same; under that name every note keeps its own letter, with no double sharps or flats.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | Ab |
| 2 | Bb |
| 3 | C |
| 4 | Db |
| ♭5 | D |
| ♭6 | Fb |
| ♭7 | Gb |
Chords in Ab Major Locrian
Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in Ab Major Locrian; tap one to see its shapes.
| Degree | Chord | 7th chord | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | — | — | Tonic |
| ii° | Bbdim | Bbm7b5 | Supertonic |
| III | — | — | Mediant |
| iv | Dbm | Dbm(maj7) | Subdominant |
| ♭V+ | Daug | Dmaj7#5 | Dominant |
| ♭VI+ | Fbaug | — | Submediant |
| ♭VII | Gb | Gb7 | Leading tone / subtonic |
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Questions
- What notes are in the Ab Major Locrian Scale?
- The Ab Major Locrian Scale has 7 notes: Ab, Bb, C, Db, D, Fb, Gb.
- What chords are in the Ab Major Locrian Scale?
- The chords of Ab Major Locrian are Bbdim (ii°), Dbm (iv), Daug (♭V+), Fbaug (♭VI+), Gb (♭VII).
- What is the formula of the major locrian scale?
- 1 2 3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7, which is the step pattern W W H H W W W (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play Ab Major Locrian on the guitar?
- The root Ab is at fret 4 on the low E string and fret 11 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 4–8, and four more positions connect it up the neck.