STRINGSCALES

G♭ messiaen's mode #3 Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: Fb, F, Gb, Ab, Bbb, Bb, C, Db, Ebb, Fb at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12

A string: Bbb, Bb, C, Db, Ebb, Fb, F, Gb, Ab, Bbb at frets 0, 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12

D string: Ebb, Fb, F, Gb, Ab, Bbb, Bb, C, Db, Ebb at frets 0, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12

G string: Ab, Bbb, Bb, C, Db, Ebb, Fb, F, Gb at frets 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11

B string: C, Db, Ebb, Fb, F, Gb, Ab, Bbb, Bb at frets 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11

High E string: Fb, F, Gb, Ab, Bbb, Bb, C, Db, Ebb, Fb at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12

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Gb messiaen's mode #3

Messiaen's mode 3 is a nine note mode of limited transposition: whole step, half, half, repeated three times. Built from three augmented-triad axes filled in with half steps, it only has four distinct transpositions before repeating itself. Messiaen used its dense, stained-glass harmony throughout his organ and orchestral music; guitarists can mine it for symmetrical runs that never settle into a key.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

G♭

I

A♭

II

B𝄫

bIII

B♭

III

C

#IV

D♭

V

E𝄫

bVI

F♭

bVII

F

VII

messiaen's mode #3 in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Learn Gb Messiaen mode 3 as the repeating cell whole-half-half, three times per octave; the cell, not the scale, is the practice unit.
  • It has only four distinct transpositions, so a lick moved up a major 3rd lands in the same collection: instant sequences.
  • Built on three augmented axes: arpeggiate the augmented triad on Gb and its neighbors, connecting them by half step for idiomatic lines.
  • Use it for dense, stained-glass chords: stack any four or five adjacent scale tones and the harmony is already Messiaen.

How to play G♭ messiaen's mode #3 on guitar

Seven flats sit in the key signature, so most players will track shapes rather than note names. Capo at fret 2 converts this to E fingering. Four open strings belong to the scale, though neither the root nor the fifth appears among them, which puts them in a colour role rather than a drone. Lowest root sits at fret 2 on the low E, with box one closing at fret 6, giving the low shape a narrow window near the nut. Roots continue at fret 4 on the D string, fret 7 on the B, fret 9 on the A and fret 11 on the G.

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