STRINGSCALES

C altered Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: E, F#, Ab, Bb, C, Db, D#, E at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12

A string: Bb, C, Db, D#, E, F#, Ab at frets 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 11

D string: D#, E, F#, Ab, Bb, C, Db at frets 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11

G string: Ab, Bb, C, Db, D#, E, F# at frets 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11

B string: C, Db, D#, E, F#, Ab, Bb at frets 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11

High E string: E, F#, Ab, Bb, C, Db, D#, E at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12

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C altered

The altered scale, also called super locrian, is the seventh mode of the melodic minor scale a half step up, and jazz's default over altered dominant chords. It contains the flat 9, sharp 9, sharp 11 and flat 13: every standard alteration and no plain tensions. Play it over a V7alt chord and resolve into the I; the wrongness is the point until the landing.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

C

i°

Cdim
D♭

bii

D♭m
D♯

#ii

D♯m
E

III+

Eaug
F♯

#IV

F♯maj
A♭

bVI

A♭maj
B♭

bvii°

B♭dim

Characteristic notes: Db (b9) and Ab (b13), every tension flattened, the go-to scale over altered dominant chords.

Same notes, different mode

C altered 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 melodic minorD# dorian b2E lydian augmentedF# lydian dominantAb mixolydian b6Bb locrian #2

altered in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Use C altered over a V7alt chord only, then resolve: the b2 (Db), #2 (D#), b5 (Gb) and b6 (Ab) are the b9, #9, #11 and b13 of the chord.
  • Think melodic minor a half step above C: same notes, so your melodic minor fingerings already play this scale.
  • Land on the 3rd (E) or flat 7th (Bb) on strong beats; they are the only stable tones, and they keep the chaos intelligible.
  • Practice resolving each altered tension by half step into the I chord's nearest chord tone; that voice leading is the whole point.

How to play C altered on guitar

Both open E strings ring the major third under C altered, so you can let either one sustain while you work the box that starts from the fret 8 root on the low E string. A-shape barre sits at 3, E-shape at 8. Root options also land at fret 1 on the B string and fret 5 on the G string, which means short licks can stay near the nut without hunting. Shapes here match C# melodic minor fingering one semitone higher, so any melodic minor pattern you already know covers this key.

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