GuitarTheory

Minor with a jazzy, sophisticated feel

Dark, Spanish/flamenco flavor, exotic

Dreamy, ethereal, floating quality

Bluesy, rock and roll, dominant

Sad, melancholic - the standard minor scale

Unstable, dissonant, rarely used

Bright, uplifting - perfect for rock, country, and blues solos

Bluesy, soulful - the foundation of rock and blues guitar

Raw, expressive - the sound of the blues with the blue note

Bright and soulful - major pentatonic with a bluesy chromatic passing tone

Jazzy, sophisticated - mixolydian with an added natural 7th for smooth bebop lines

Dreamy, ambiguous - no half steps or perfect 5th creates a floating quality

Symmetrical, tense - built on alternating whole and half steps

Symmetrical - built on alternating half and whole steps, used over dominant 7th chords

Exotic, dramatic - Eastern European folk flavor with two augmented 2nds

Unique, bittersweet - major scale with a flat 6th adding an exotic twist

Very exotic, Middle Eastern - two augmented 2nds give an intense, mysterious sound

Dark, mysterious - flat 2nd creates distinctive tension resolving to the tonic

Exotic, flamenco and Arabic flavor - the 5th mode of harmonic minor with a raised 3rd

Meditative, pentatonic koto scale - captures the essence of traditional Japanese music

Ancient, introspective - traditional Japanese in scale with a very dark, minor feel

Bright, folk pentatonic - used in traditional Japanese folk and festival music

Very dark, ancient - based on Locrian, used in Gagaku court music and Zen music

Deep, introspective Hindustani morning raga - the flat 2nd and raised 4th create a yearning quality

Restless, adventurous Hindustani evening raga - avoids the perfect 4th and uses a flat 2nd

Profound Hindustani evening raga - the raised 4th alongside flat 2nd and 6th creates a deeply meditative, sunset quality

Lydian with a b7 - the 4th mode of melodic minor. Essential jazz color over dominant 7th chords

Every note altered - the 7th mode of melodic minor. The primary jazz scale over altered dominant 7th chords

The 2nd mode of melodic minor - Dorian with a flat 2nd. Dark and exotic with a Spanish or Middle Eastern quality

The 3rd mode of melodic minor - Lydian with a raised 5th. Ethereal and otherworldly, used in modern jazz harmony

The 6th mode of melodic minor - Locrian with a natural 2nd. Used over half-diminished chords in jazz

Major scale with a chromatic passing tone between the 5th and 6th - creates smooth 8th-note lines in bebop jazz

Ancient Middle Eastern scale with two augmented 2nds and a diminished 4th - intensely exotic and mysterious

Eastern European folk scale - natural minor with a raised 4th. Found in Balkan, Romanian, and klezmer music

Major scale with a flat 2nd - bright yet unusual. Used in classical music and occasionally modern jazz

Verdi's exotic scale - its unusual step pattern creates a mysterious, unresolved quality

Symmetrical 6-note scale alternating minor 3rds and half steps. Creates an ambiguous, hovering quality over augmented chords

Scriabin's mystical scale built from the overtone series. Favored by Debussy, Scriabin, and progressive rock composers