STRINGSCALES

A♭ neapolitan major pentatonic Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: Gb, Ab, C, Db, Ebb at frets 2, 4, 8, 9, 10

A string: C, Db, Ebb, Gb, Ab at frets 3, 4, 5, 9, 11

D string: Ebb, Gb, Ab, C, Db, Ebb at frets 0, 4, 6, 10, 11, 12

G string: Ab, C, Db, Ebb, Gb at frets 1, 5, 6, 7, 11

B string: C, Db, Ebb, Gb, Ab at frets 1, 2, 3, 7, 9

High E string: Gb, Ab, C, Db, Ebb at frets 2, 4, 8, 9, 10

Pick a root note

Pick a scale

Ab neapolitan major pentatonic

The neapolitan major pentatonic is a five note extraction with root, major 3rd, 4th, flat 5th and flat 7th. The clash between the bright 3rd and the flat 5th gives it a wayward, unresolved character closer to a jazz altered sound than to a folk pentatonic. Use it as an angular color over dominant chords rather than as a home scale.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

A♭

I

C

III

D♭

IV

E𝄫

bV

G♭

bVII

neapolitan major pentatonic in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • An off-kilter pentatonic: major 3rd (C) beside a flat 5th (D); rock those two against each other as the hook.
  • Over a 7b5 chord on Ab, all five notes land; it is that chord's color in scale form.
  • Use the 4th (Db) as the connective tone between the bright III and the dark b5 (D); it softens the leap.
  • Treat it as an effect scale: one phrase inside an otherwise plain solo reads as deliberate strangeness.

How to play A♭ neapolitan major pentatonic on guitar

Open D is the one open string in the set, spelled Ebb, so a single ringing option exists and nothing else comes free. Root at fret 1 on the G string sits closest to the nut, which means the first shape can start there instead of higher up. Capo fret 1 for the G version. Four flats. Shapes off the fret 4 root on the low E run out at fret 8, so movement up the neck starts soon after.

homeall scalesaboutfaqpricingmicrotonalterms & conditionsprivacy policycookie policy© 2026 StringScales. All rights reserved.