STRINGSCALES

A♭ harmonic major Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: Fb, G, Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb, Fb at frets 0, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12

A string: Bb, C, Db, Eb, Fb, G, Ab at frets 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10, 11

D string: Eb, Fb, G, Ab, Bb, C, Db at frets 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11

G string: G, Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb, Fb, G at frets 0, 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 12

B string: C, Db, Eb, Fb, G, Ab, Bb at frets 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11

High E string: Fb, G, Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb, Fb at frets 0, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12

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Ab harmonic major

The harmonic major scale is a major scale with a flat 6th: bright below, shadowed above, with harmonic minor's augmented 2nd gap relocated between the 6th and 7th. It lets a major key borrow the minor iv chord without leaving the scale, a favorite bittersweet cadence from Schubert to the Beatles. Its modes include the lydian diminished scale.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

A♭

I

A♭maj
B♭

ii°

B♭dim
C

iii

Cm
D♭

iv

D♭m
E♭

V

E♭maj
F♭

bVI+

F♭aug
G

vii°

Gdim

Same notes, different mode

Ab harmonic major uses the same notes as the scales below. Start from a different note and you get a new mode built on the very same note set.

Db lydian diminished

harmonic major in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Play Ab major, then flatten only the 6th (E): that single change is harmonic major, brightness with one shadowed degree.
  • Its classic use is the minor iv chord in a major key: over IV minor in Ab, this scale is the exact fit.
  • Lean on the bVI (E) to V half step at cadences, the borrowed-from-minor sigh inside a major key.
  • The augmented 2nd between bVI (E) and VII gives melodies an exotic lift right before the leading tone resolves to Ab.

How to play A♭ harmonic major on guitar

Nearest root is fret 1 on the G string, and the E strings answer at fret 4, so an E-shape barre at 4 handles most of this key. Capo fret 1 rewrites it in G, which lets 5 flats turn into shapes you use daily. Open G is in the scale as the major seventh, and both E strings give Fb, a minor sixth over Ab. EbM carries the V.

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