ArpeggiosEN

Scale

B♭ altered

Melodic minor modes

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

Notation

441♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71

Fretboard — frets 0–24

B♭ altered — frets 0 to 24, 88 notes, roots in orange♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭41♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭7♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭50123456789101112131415161718192021222324
B♭ altered — frets 0 to 24, 88 notes, roots in orange♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭41♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭7♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭5♭6♭71♭2♭3♭4♭50123456789101112131415161718192021222324

Degrees

DegreeNoteIntervalSemitonesRole
1B♭perfect unison0The root — the tonal centre every other note is heard against; land on it and the sound resolves.
♭2C♭minor second1The minor second — a half-step above the root and the sharpest tension in the box; phrygian and the altered scale lean on it.
♭3D♭minor third3The minor third — the dark counterpart of the major third; it turns a shape minor and colours m, m7 and the minor scales.
♭4E♭♭diminished fourth4The diminished fourth — a rare, crushed fourth; the altered scale and ultralocrian use it for maximum darkness.
♭5F♭diminished fifth6The diminished fifth — a flattened fifth that destabilises the chord; dim, m7♭5 and locrian are built on it.
♭6G♭minor sixth8The minor sixth — the dark sixth of aeolian, harmonic minor and mixolydian ♭6; it adds a classical, mournful weight.
♭7A♭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

The altered scale is the seventh degree of melodic minor, and it is the most tension-filled choice for a dominant chord: a root with every upper degree altered — flat second, flat third, flat fourth, flat fifth, flat sixth and flat seventh. Because it contains both the flat fifth and the flat ninth, it covers the altered dominant sound completely, and its flat fourth and flat sixth are the enharmonic equivalents of the major third and thirteenth, which is why it works over a plain 7 as well. Jazz improvisers use it over V7alt chords. Listen for how every colour note leans toward resolution.

How to practise this scale

  • Play the flat fifth and flat ninth together and hear the full alteration.
  • Improvise over a V7alt chord and resolve the flat sixth down a half-step.
  • Compare it with mixolydian and hear every colour note move.
  • Play the scale in pairs of altered notes and listen for the pull home.