Guitar UpscaleAltered Scale (Super Locrian) on guitar
The altered scale is the seventh mode of melodic minor, full of tension for dominant 7th chords that resolve.
This scale has the same notes as the Diminished Whole Tone scale. The app lists it under both names.
| Notes in A | A Bb C Db Eb F G |
|---|---|
| Formula | 1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 b7 |
| Steps | H W H W W W W (W whole step, H half step) |
| Note count | 7 |
| Style in the app | Special, scale "Altered" |
Play the A Altered Scale on the fretboard in Guitar Upscale
About the Altered Scale (Super Locrian)
The notes are root, flat 9th, sharp 9th, 3rd, flat 5th, flat 13th and flat 7th. Every note that can be altered on a dominant chord is altered.
It is also called super Locrian, since it is Locrian with a flat 4th that sounds as a major 3rd.
Use it over the V7 chord right before it resolves. G altered over G7 to C is the classic case.
Intervals from the root
| Degree | Interval | Semitones | In A |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Root | 0 | A |
| b2 | Minor 2nd | 1 | Bb |
| b3 | Minor 3rd | 3 | C |
| b4 | Major 3rd | 4 | Db |
| b5 | Tritone | 6 | Eb |
| b6 | Minor 6th | 8 | F |
| b7 | Minor 7th | 10 | G |
Chords in the A Altered Scale
Stack every other note of the scale and you get one chord on each note. These chords sound at home with the scale, so they make good progressions.
| Degree | Triad | Seventh chord |
|---|---|---|
| i° | Adim | Am7b5 |
| bii | Bbm | BbmMaj7 |
| biii | Cm | Cm7 |
| bIV+ | Dbaug | Dbmaj7#5 |
| bV | Eb | Eb7 |
| bVI | F | F7 |
| bvii° | Gdim | Gm7b5 |
Same notes, another starting note
Start the A Altered Scale on another of its notes and you get these scales:
- From degree b2 (Bb): Bb Melodic Minor scale
- From degree b3 (C): C Javanese scale
- From degree b4 (Db): Db Lydian Augmented scale
- From degree b5 (Eb): Eb Overtone scale
- From degree b6 (F): F Hindu scale
- From degree b7 (G): G Locrian #2 scale
Altered Scale in every key
| Key | Notes | Play it |
|---|---|---|
| C | C Db Eb Fb Gb Ab Bb | Open |
| C# | C# D E F G A B | Open |
| D | D Eb F Gb Ab Bb C | Open |
| Eb | Eb Fb Gb G A Cb Db | Open |
| E | E F G Ab Bb C D | Open |
| F | F Gb Ab A Cb Db Eb | Open |
| F# | F# G A Bb C D E | Open |
| G | G Ab Bb Cb Db Eb F | Open |
| G# | G# A B C D E F# | Open |
| A | A Bb C Db Eb F G | Open |
| Bb | Bb Cb Db D Fb Gb Ab | Open |
| B | B C D Eb F G A | Open |
More Special scales
- Chromatic Scale
- Whole Tone Scale
- Leading Whole Tone
- Diminished (Whole Half)
- Diminished (Half Whole)
- Diminished Whole Tone
- Octatonic Scale
- Augmented Scale
- Enigmatic Scale
- Nine Tone Scale
- Overtone (Lydian Dominant)
- Six Tone Symmetrical
- Lydian Diminished
- Lydian #2
- Locrian #2 (Half Diminished)
- Locrian Natural 6
- Ultralocrian
- Ionian #5
- Ten Tone Dominant
- Ten Tone Harmonic
- Ten Tone Minor