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Guitar scale · harmonic & melodic

Bb Locrian Natural 6 Scale

Mode 2 of Harmonic Minor: Locrian with a natural 6th.

Notes BbCbDbEbFbGAb
Formula 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 ♭5 6 ♭7
Steps H W W H W+H H W
Mood Dark, Tense, Unusual
Heard in Modal Improvisation, Jazz

Interactive scale diagram

Bb Locrian Natural 6 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 Locrian Natural 6 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 6–10
e|------------------------------6-7-9-|
B|--------------------------8-9-------|
G|--------------------6-8-9-----------|
D|--------------6-8-9-----------------|
A|-------6-7-10-----------------------|
E|-6-7-9------------------------------|
Position 2 · D shape frets 8–12
e|-------------------------------------9-11-12-|
B|-----------------------------9-11-12---------|
G|----------------------8-9-12-----------------|
D|---------------8-9-11------------------------|
A|---------10-11-------------------------------|
E|-9-11-12-------------------------------------|
Position 3 · C shape frets 10–14
e|-------------------------------------------11-12-|
B|----------------------------------11-12-14-------|
G|----------------------------12-13----------------|
D|-------------------11-13-14----------------------|
A|-------10-11-13-14-------------------------------|
E|-11-12-------------------------------------------|
Position 4 · A shape frets 13–17
e|-------------------------------------------15-16-|
B|----------------------------------14-16-17-------|
G|-------------------------13-15-16----------------|
D|----------------13-14-17-------------------------|
A|-------13-14-16----------------------------------|
E|-15-16-------------------------------------------|
Position 5 · G shape frets 15–19
e|-------------------------------------------15-16-18-19-|
B|-------------------------------------16-17-------------|
G|----------------------------15-16-18-------------------|
D|----------------------17-18----------------------------|
A|-------------16-18-19----------------------------------|
E|-15-16-18-19-------------------------------------------|

How to play Bb Locrian Natural 6 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 (♭3, ♭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 6–10. 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
♭3 Db
4 Eb
♭5 Fb
6 G
♭7 Ab

Chords in Bb Locrian Natural 6

Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in Bb Locrian Natural 6; tap one to see its shapes.

Degree Chord 7th chord Function
i° Bbdim Bbm7b5 Tonic
♭II+ Cbaug Cbmaj7#5 Supertonic
♭iii Dbm Dbm7 Mediant
IV Eb Eb7 Subdominant
♭V Fb Fbmaj7 Dominant
vi° Gdim Gdim7 Submediant
♭vii Abm Abm(maj7) Leading tone / subtonic

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Questions

What notes are in the Bb Locrian Natural 6 Scale?
The Bb Locrian Natural 6 Scale has 7 notes: Bb, Cb, Db, Eb, Fb, G, Ab.
What chords are in the Bb Locrian Natural 6 Scale?
The chords of Bb Locrian Natural 6 are Bbdim (i°), Cbaug (♭II+), Dbm (♭iii), Eb (IV), Fb (♭V), Gdim (vi°), Abm (♭vii).
What is the formula of the locrian natural 6 scale?
1 ♭2 ♭3 4 ♭5 6 ♭7, which is the step pattern H W W H W+H H W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Where do I play Bb Locrian Natural 6 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 6–10, and four more positions connect it up the neck.

Locrian Natural 6 Scale in every key

More scales in Bb