ArpeggiosEN

Scale

A♯ aeolian

Major scale modes

Formula
1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7
Notes
A♯ B♯ C♯ D♯ E♯ F♯ G♯

Notation

4412♭345♭6♭71

Fretboard — frets 0–24

A♯ aeolian — frets 0 to 24, 84 notes, roots in orange5♭6♭712♭345♭6♭712♭342♭345♭6♭712♭345♭6♭71♭712♭345♭6♭712♭345♭645♭6♭712♭345♭6♭712♭312♭345♭6♭712♭345♭6♭75♭6♭712♭345♭6♭712♭340123456789101112131415161718192021222324
A♯ aeolian — frets 0 to 24, 84 notes, roots in orange5♭6♭712♭345♭6♭712♭342♭345♭6♭712♭345♭6♭71♭712♭345♭6♭712♭345♭645♭6♭712♭345♭6♭712♭312♭345♭6♭712♭345♭6♭75♭6♭712♭345♭6♭712♭340123456789101112131415161718192021222324

Degrees

DegreeNoteIntervalSemitonesRole
1A♯perfect unison0The root — the tonal centre every other note is heard against; land on it and the sound resolves.
2B♯major second2The major second — a bright neighbour a whole step above the root; in sus2 it replaces the third, so the chord commits to neither major nor minor.
♭3C♯minor third3The minor third — the dark counterpart of the major third; it turns a shape minor and colours m, m7 and the minor scales.
4D♯perfect fourth5The perfect fourth — stable yet suspended; in sus4 it takes the third's place and leaves the chord hanging.
5E♯perfect fifth7The perfect fifth — the root's strongest companion; it anchors every triad and stacked-seventh quality.
♭6F♯minor sixth8The minor sixth — the dark sixth of aeolian, harmonic minor and mixolydian ♭6; it adds a classical, mournful weight.
♭7G♯minor seventh10The minor seventh — the dominant's engine; a whole step under the root, it turns a triad into a 7 chord and drives the resolution.

About this scale

Aeolian is the sixth degree of the major scale, and most players know it as the natural minor scale. It lowers the third, sixth and seventh, producing a sound that is melancholy and completely stable — the relative minor of the major key, with the same notes and a different centre. It is the scale of the m chord and the m7 chord, the backbone of rock and pop minor keys, and the reference against which dorian and phrygian are heard. The flat sixth and flat seventh give it a darker weight than dorian. Listen for the flat sixth leaning toward the fifth and the whole scale settling into the root.

How to practise this scale

  • Play the flat sixth and flat seventh and listen to the weight they add.
  • Compare it with dorian and hear what the lowered sixth changes.
  • Improvise over a minor vamp and resolve phrases to the third.
  • Play the scale from the sixth degree of a major scale you know.