A flat Phrygian mode

The A flat Phrygian mode has 7 notes: A♭, B𝄫, C♭, D♭, E♭, F♭ and G♭. Its formula is 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 and it is built with the steps H W W W H W W.

Notes, formula and steps

The intervals from A♭ are root (A♭), minor 2nd (B𝄫), minor 3rd (C♭), perfect 4th (D♭), perfect 5th (E♭), minor 6th (F♭) and minor 7th (G♭). Write down the step pattern H W W W H W W (W = whole step, H = half step, W+H = a step and a half): it is the fingerprint of the Phrygian mode, whatever the starting note. This scale has 7 flats: A♭, B𝄫, C♭, D♭, E♭, F♭ and G♭.

How to play the A flat Phrygian mode on piano

Start on A♭ and play A♭, B𝄫, C♭, D♭, E♭, F♭ and G♭ going up, then come back down. Say the note names out loud while you play: it links the sound, the keys and the names. Practise hands separately first, slowly with the metronome, then speed up.

How to play the A flat Phrygian mode on guitar

On guitar, the root A♭ sits at fret 4 on the low E string and fret 11 on the A string. Start from one of these roots and play the notes of the fretboard map above in order, one string after another. The whole-neck view shows every place the A flat Phrygian mode appears, so you can connect the positions instead of staying in one box.

Chords in the A flat Phrygian mode

Stacking every other note of the scale gives one chord per degree: A♭m, B𝄫, C♭, D♭m, E♭dim, F♭ and G♭m. These are the chords you can combine to write a progression that stays in the A flat Phrygian mode.

Relative and parallel scales

The A flat Phrygian mode shares its notes with the E major scale: same notes, different starting point and a different mood. Its parallel scale, on the same root, is the A flat major scale. Switching between them is a classic way to change colour without changing key.

About the Phrygian mode

The darkest of the common minor modes, defined by its ♭2, a semitone above the root. That half step gives a tense, heavy sound with a Spanish or Middle Eastern flavour. Metal riffs and flamenco both live on the move from the ♭II chord down to i (for example F to Em in E Phrygian), a semitone that sounds like a slammed door.

Metal, flamenco, film music and some electronic music. Play it over a minor tonic with a major ♭II nearby (i ♭II i, i ♭II ♭III ♭II), over pedal-point riffs on the root, and over m7 chords that act as iii in a major key. Over a major tonic, raise the 3rd: you get Phrygian dominant, the 5th mode of the harmonic minor.

On guitar, play riffs that alternate the root and the ♭2 on the low string (for example the open low E and the 1st fret), then play the whole scale along one string to hear each interval. On piano, the white keys from E to E give E Phrygian: hold E in the left hand and play F major and E minor triads above it.

The 3rd mode of the major scale: formula 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7, steps H W W W H W W. Phrygian is the natural minor with a lowered 2nd. Its parent major scale starts a major third below (E Phrygian has the notes of C major). Its v chord is diminished, so cadences use ♭II or ♭vii instead of a dominant.

Related

• E major scale
• A flat major scale
• A flat natural minor scale
• A flat minor pentatonic scale
• A flat major pentatonic scale
• A flat blues scale
• A flat Dorian mode
• A flat Mixolydian mode
• A♭m
• A♭sus4
• A♭m7

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