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Guitar scale · harmonic & melodic

C Mixolydian b2 Scale

Mode 5 of Harmonic Major: Mixolydian with a lowered 2nd.

Notes CDbEFGABb
Formula 1 ♭2 3 4 5 6 ♭7
Steps H W+H H W W H W
Mood Exotic, Tense, Dominant
Heard in Modal Improvisation

Interactive scale diagram

C Mixolydian b2 Scale · Standard tuning

STR OP 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 E A D G B E

Tap any note to hear it.

C Mixolydian b2 Scale tab: all 5 positions

Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.

Position 1 · E shape frets 8–12
e|--------------------------------------8-9-12-|
B|--------------------------------10-11--------|
G|------------------------9-10-12--------------|
D|----------------8-10-11----------------------|
A|--------8-10-12------------------------------|
E|-8-9-12--------------------------------------|
Position 2 · D shape frets 10–14
e|-------------------------------------------12-13-|
B|----------------------------------11-13-14-------|
G|-------------------------10-12-14----------------|
D|----------------10-11-14-------------------------|
A|-------10-12-13----------------------------------|
E|-12-13-------------------------------------------|
Position 3 · C shape frets 12–16
e|-------------------------------------------12-13-15-|
B|-------------------------------------13-14----------|
G|----------------------------12-14-15----------------|
D|----------------------14-15-------------------------|
A|----------12-13-15-16-------------------------------|
E|-12-13-15-------------------------------------------|
Position 4 · A shape frets 15–19
e|-------------------------------------------15-17-18-|
B|-------------------------------------17-18----------|
G|----------------------------15-17-18----------------|
D|-------------------15-17-19-------------------------|
A|----------15-16-19----------------------------------|
E|-15-17-18-------------------------------------------|
Position 5 · G shape frets 17–21
e|-------------------------------------------17-18-20-21-|
B|-------------------------------------18-20-------------|
G|----------------------------17-18-21-------------------|
D|-------------------17-19-20----------------------------|
A|-------------19-20-------------------------------------|
E|-17-18-20-21-------------------------------------------|

How to play C Mixolydian b2 on guitar

Find the root first: C is at fret 8 on the low E string and fret 3 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every C 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 8–12. 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.

Degrees

DegreeNote
1 C
♭2 Db
3 E
4 F
5 G
6 A
♭7 Bb

Chords in C Mixolydian b2

Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in C Mixolydian b2; tap one to see its shapes.

Degree Chord 7th chord Function
I C C7 Tonic
♭II+ Dbaug Dbmaj7#5 Supertonic
iii° Edim Edim7 Mediant
IV F Fmaj7 Subdominant
v° Gdim Gm7b5 Dominant
vi Am Am7 Submediant
♭vii Bbm Bbm(maj7) Leading tone / subtonic

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Questions

What notes are in the C Mixolydian b2 Scale?
The C Mixolydian b2 Scale has 7 notes: C, Db, E, F, G, A, Bb.
What chords are in the C Mixolydian b2 Scale?
The chords of C Mixolydian b2 are C (I), Dbaug (♭II+), Edim (iii°), F (IV), Gdim (v°), Am (vi), Bbm (♭vii).
What is the formula of the mixolydian b2 scale?
1 ♭2 3 4 5 6 ♭7, which is the step pattern H W+H H W W H W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Where do I play C Mixolydian b2 on the guitar?
The root C is at fret 8 on the low E string and fret 3 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 8–12, and four more positions connect it up the neck.

Mixolydian b2 Scale in every key

More scales in C