STRINGSCALES

B♭ messiaen's mode #3 Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: E, F, Gb, Ab, A, Bb, C, Db, D, E at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12

A string: A, Bb, C, Db, D, E, F, Gb, Ab, A at frets 0, 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12

D string: D, E, F, Gb, Ab, A, Bb, C, Db, D at frets 0, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12

G string: Ab, A, Bb, C, Db, D, E, F, Gb at frets 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11

B string: C, Db, D, E, F, Gb, Ab, A, Bb at frets 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11

High E string: E, F, Gb, Ab, A, Bb, C, Db, D, E at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12

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Bb messiaen's mode #3

Messiaen's mode 3 is a nine note mode of limited transposition: whole step, half, half, repeated three times. Built from three augmented-triad axes filled in with half steps, it only has four distinct transpositions before repeating itself. Messiaen used its dense, stained-glass harmony throughout his organ and orchestral music; guitarists can mine it for symmetrical runs that never settle into a key.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

B♭

I

C

II

D♭

bIII

D

III

E

#IV

F

V

G♭

bVI

A♭

bVII

A

VII

messiaen's mode #3 in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Learn Bb Messiaen mode 3 as the repeating cell whole-half-half, three times per octave; the cell, not the scale, is the practice unit.
  • It has only four distinct transpositions, so a lick moved up a major 3rd lands in the same collection: instant sequences.
  • Built on three augmented axes: arpeggiate the augmented triad on Bb and its neighbors, connecting them by half step for idiomatic lines.
  • Use it for dense, stained-glass chords: stack any four or five adjacent scale tones and the harmony is already Messiaen.

How to play B♭ messiaen's mode #3 on guitar

Fret 1 on the A string is the root closest to the nut, and fret 6 on the low E is the lowest-pitched one. Box one built there ends at fret 10, so shifting position is the price of going higher. With a capo at fret 1 this reads as A fingering, which lets a familiar shape set do the work. Four open strings occur in the scale but skip the root and fifth, meaning they pass through rather than hold. Signature carries four flats.

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