STRINGSCALES

C bebop locrian Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: F, Gb, G, Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb at frets 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11

A string: Bb, C, Db, Eb, F, Gb, G, Ab at frets 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11

D string: Eb, F, Gb, G, Ab, Bb, C, Db at frets 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11

G string: G, Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb, F, Gb, G at frets 0, 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12

B string: C, Db, Eb, F, Gb, G, Ab, Bb at frets 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11

High E string: F, Gb, G, Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb at frets 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11

Pick a root note

Pick a scale

C bebop locrian

The bebop locrian scale adds a natural 5th as a passing tone inside the locrian mode, smoothing the m7b5 sound into an eight note bebop vehicle. The borrowed 5th lets lines glide through half-diminished chords with the same downbeat logic as the other bebop scales. Use it on the ii chord of a minor ii-V-i.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

C

I

D♭

bII

E♭

bIII

F

IV

G♭

bV

G

V

A♭

bVI

B♭

bVII

Same notes, different mode

C bebop locrian 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 ichikosuchoEb bebop minorAb bebop

bebop locrian in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Use C bebop locrian over m7b5 chords in eighth-note lines; the borrowed natural 5th (G) is strictly a passing tone between bV (Gb) and bVI (Ab).
  • Anchor on the half-diminished arpeggio (root, bIII (Eb), bV (Gb), bVII (Bb)) and let the scale fill the gaps.
  • It pairs with the dominant bebop scale of the V7b9 that follows: same eighth-note engine through the whole minor ii-V-i.
  • Accent the flat 2nd (Db) sparingly; on a m7b5 it adds bite, but resolving it down to the root ends phrases cleanly.

How to play C bebop locrian on guitar

Open G rings a perfect fifth over the tonic, so you can leave it sounding under fretted lines anywhere on the neck. Lowest root lands at fret 8, matched by an E-shape barre in the same place, with the A-shape available at fret 3. Box one ends at fret 12. Five flats show up in this key, so five of the eight tones need an accidental.

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