STRINGSCALES

A♭ malkos raga Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: Fb, Gb, Ab, Cb, Db, Fb at frets 0, 2, 4, 7, 9, 12

A string: Cb, Db, Fb, Gb, Ab at frets 2, 4, 7, 9, 11

D string: Fb, Gb, Ab, Cb, Db at frets 2, 4, 6, 9, 11

G string: Ab, Cb, Db, Fb, Gb at frets 1, 4, 6, 9, 11

B string: Cb, Db, Fb, Gb, Ab, Cb at frets 0, 2, 5, 7, 9, 12

High E string: Fb, Gb, Ab, Cb, Db, Fb at frets 0, 2, 4, 7, 9, 12

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Ab malkos raga

The malkos raga is the pentatonic framework of raga Malkauns, one of the oldest and most revered ragas in Hindustani classical music: root, flat 3rd, 4th, flat 6th, flat 7th. With no 2nd and no 5th it avoids every easy anchor, giving it the deep, meditative gravity of the late night performances it is traditionally reserved for.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

A♭

I

C♭

bIII

D♭

IV

F♭

bVI

G♭

bVII

Same notes, different mode

Ab malkos raga 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.

Cb ritusenDb minor pentatonicFb major pentatonicGb egyptian

malkos raga in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • No 2nd, no 5th: build Ab malkos phrases from root, b3 (B), 4th (Db), b6 (E) and b7 (Gb), and let the missing anchors create the depth.
  • Descend more than you ascend; Malkauns phrases traditionally unfold downward toward the root.
  • Sustain the flat 6th (E) longer than feels natural, then fall to the 4th; that is the raga's meditative center of gravity.
  • Play it over a bare root drone late-night slow; speed and chords both dissolve its character.

How to play A♭ malkos raga on guitar

Both E strings ring Fb at the minor sixth, and the open B gives Cb, so open notes decorate rather than anchor. Root nearest the nut sits at 1 on the G string. Lowest root is fret 4 on the low E. A capo at 1 makes these fingerings G malkos raga, which means the shapes double. Fret 8 marks the end of the first box, so the hand moves there.

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