STRINGSCALES

E♭ locrian dominant Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: Fb, G, Ab, Bbb, Cb, Db, Eb, Fb at frets 0, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12

A string: Bbb, Cb, Db, Eb, Fb, G, Ab, Bbb at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12

D string: Eb, Fb, G, Ab, Bbb, Cb, Db at frets 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11

G string: G, Ab, Bbb, Cb, Db, Eb, Fb, G at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12

B string: Cb, Db, Eb, Fb, G, Ab, Bbb, Cb at frets 0, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12

High E string: Fb, G, Ab, Bbb, Cb, Db, Eb, Fb at frets 0, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12

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Eb locrian dominant

The locrian dominant scale, the fifth mode of the neapolitan minor scale, puts a major 3rd inside an otherwise locrian frame: flat 2nd, flat 5th, flat 6th, flat 7th. It spells a dominant 7th chord with b9, #11 and b13, so it works over heavily altered dominants where the plain altered scale's sharp 9 is not wanted.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

E♭

I

E♭majb5
F♭

bII

F♭maj
G

III

B𝄫7no5/G
A♭

iv

A♭m
B𝄫

bV

B𝄫maj
C♭

bVI+

C♭aug
D♭

bvii

D♭m

Same notes, different mode

Eb locrian dominant 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.

Fb ionian major #2G ultralocrianAb neapolitan minorA lydian #6Cb mixolydian augmentedDb romani minor

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

tip
  • Over a 7b9b13 chord with a #11 available, Eb locrian dominant supplies every alteration while keeping the plain major 3rd (G).
  • Anchor lines on III and bVII (Db), the guide tones; the b2 (E), b5 (A) and b6 (B) then read as controlled tension instead of wrong notes.
  • Resolve down a half step: the entire scale leans onto the chord one fret below.
  • Compare with the altered scale: this keeps a perfect 4th (Ab) and drops the #9, a subtly less angry dominant color.

How to play E♭ locrian dominant on guitar

Five open strings belong, the G among them as the major third, so they thicken a line without ever acting as a pedal. A capo at the 1st fret shifts everything into D, which lets you skip six flats of reading. Nearest root to the nut: fret 1, D string. Lowest-pitched root waits at fret 11, with the A shape barred at fret 6.

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