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B♭ messiaen's mode #7 Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: E, F, Gb, G, A, Bb, Cb, C, Db, Eb, E at frets 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12

A string: A, Bb, Cb, C, Db, Eb, E, F, Gb, G, A at frets 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12

D string: Eb, E, F, Gb, G, A, Bb, Cb, C, Db at frets 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11

G string: G, A, Bb, Cb, C, Db, Eb, E, F, Gb, G at frets 0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

B string: Cb, C, Db, Eb, E, F, Gb, G, A, Bb, Cb at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12

High E string: E, F, Gb, G, A, Bb, Cb, C, Db, Eb, E at frets 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12

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Bb messiaen's mode #7

Messiaen's mode 7 is the largest mode of limited transposition: ten notes, leaving out just one whole-step pair per tritone half. It is nearly chromatic, with symmetry at the tritone and only six distinct transpositions. In practice it works as organized chromaticism: dense clusters and runs that still obey an internal pattern rather than free atonality.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

B♭

I

C♭

bII

C

II

D♭

bIII

E♭

IV

E

#IV

F

V

G♭

bVI

G

VI

A

VII

messiaen's mode #7 in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Ten notes from Bb: think of it as the chromatic scale with one whole-step gap per tritone half; the gaps define it, so phrase around them.
  • Its symmetry at the tritone (E) gives structure to near-chromatic runs: mirror each gesture six frets away.
  • Use it as organized chromaticism for climaxes: scale-wise motion reads as intent where free chromatics read as noise.
  • Extract subsets: any five adjacent tones give a dense cluster scale; contrast two subsets from opposite tritone halves.

How to play B♭ messiaen's mode #7 on guitar

A-shape barre at fret 1 puts the root about as close to the nut as a barre chord can sit. Clamp a capo at fret 1 and the key plays as A fingering, which means open-position grips survive the 5 flats. Open A rings the major seventh here. E shares this exact fingering six semitones away, so time spent on Bb counts twice.

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