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Guitar scale · pentatonic & blues

Bb In Sen Scale

Japanese five-note scale 1 ♭2 4 5 ♭7. It holds a 7sus4 chord.

Notes BbCbEbFAb
Formula 1 ♭2 4 5 ♭7
Steps H 4 W W+H W
Mood Dark, Spare, Mysterious
Heard in Japanese Traditional Music, Modern Rock

Interactive scale diagram

Bb In Sen Scale · Standard tuning

STR OP 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 E A D G B E

Tap any note to hear it.

Bb In Sen Scale tab: all 5 positions

Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.

Position 1 · E shape frets 6–9
e|---------------------6-7-|
B|-----------------6-9-----|
G|---------------8---------|
D|---------6-8-9-----------|
A|-----6-8-----------------|
E|-6-7---------------------|
Position 2 · D shape frets 8–11
e|-----------------------11-|
B|------------------9-11----|
G|-------------8-10---------|
D|---------8-9--------------|
A|----8-11------------------|
E|-11-----------------------|
Position 3 · C shape frets 10–13
e|----------------------------11-13-|
B|----------------------11-12-------|
G|----------------10-13-------------|
D|-------------13-------------------|
A|-------11-13----------------------|
E|-11-13----------------------------|
Position 4 · A shape frets 13–16
e|-------------------------------13-16-|
B|----------------------------16-------|
G|-------------------13-15-16----------|
D|-------------13-15-------------------|
A|-------13-14-------------------------|
E|-13-16-------------------------------|
Position 5 · G shape frets 15–18
e|----------------------------16-18-|
B|----------------------16-18-------|
G|----------------15-16-------------|
D|----------15-18-------------------|
A|-------18-------------------------|
E|-16-18----------------------------|

How to play Bb In Sen on guitar

Find the root first: Bb is at fret 6 on the low E string and fret 1 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every Bb on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (4, 5, ♭7), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.

Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 6–9. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.

Degrees

DegreeNote
1 Bb
♭2 Cb
4 Eb
5 F
♭7 Ab

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Questions

What notes are in the Bb In Sen Scale?
The Bb In Sen Scale has 5 notes: Bb, Cb, Eb, F, Ab.
What is the formula of the in sen scale?
1 ♭2 4 5 ♭7, which is the step pattern H 4 W W+H W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Where do I play Bb In Sen on the guitar?
The root Bb is at fret 6 on the low E string and fret 1 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 6–9, and four more positions connect it up the neck.

In Sen Scale in every key

More scales in Bb