STRINGSCALES

F neapolitan major Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

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

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

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

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

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

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

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F neapolitan major

The neapolitan major scale is a melodic minor scale with a flat 2nd: only the opening half step is dark, and everything from the 4th up is pure major brightness. That lopsided design gives melodies a shadowed start and a radiant finish. It generates its own mode family, including the leading whole tone and major locrian scales.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

F

i

Fm
G♭

bII+

G♭aug
A♭

bIII+

A♭aug
B♭

IV

B♭maj
C

V

Cmaj♭5
D

vi°

Ddim
E

VII

G♭7no5/E

Same notes, different mode

F neapolitan major 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.

Gb leading whole toneAb lydian augmented dominantBb lydian dominant b6C major locrianD half-diminished b4E altered dominant double b3

neapolitan major in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Dark start, bright finish: open phrases with the b2 (Gb) against the root, then climb into the pure-major top half (VI and VII).
  • Use it over a major chord approached from its Neapolitan (the bII (Gb) major triad); the scale bridges both harmonies.
  • Think melodic minor with a flat 2nd: your F melodic minor fingering needs only one altered note.
  • Write a two-bar phrase where bar one uses only root, b2 (Gb), b3 (Ab) and bar two only IV, V, VI, VII; the scale's split personality becomes the hook.

How to play F neapolitan major on guitar

Fret 1 carries the root on both E strings, alongside the E-shape barre, so Fm and its scale share a hand position. Open D lands on the sixth while both E strings give the seventh, so three unfretted strings sit inside the key. A capo at fret 1 means E shapes. Position one stops at fret 5, so movement up the neck starts early.

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