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Guitar scale · half-diminished scale

E Locrian Natural 2 Scale

Mode 6 of Melodic Minor: Locrian with a natural 2nd, which softens the most unstable mode.

Notes EF#GABbCD
Formula 1 2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7
Steps W H W H W W W
Mood Dark, Smooth, Tense
Heard in Over m7♭5 and m9♭5 chords, Jazz

Interactive scale diagram

E Locrian Natural 2 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.

E Locrian Natural 2 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 0–4
e|-----------------------------0-2-3-|
B|-------------------------1-3-------|
G|-------------------0-2-3-----------|
D|-------------0-2-4-----------------|
A|-------0-1-3-----------------------|
E|-0-2-3-----------------------------|
Position 2 · D shape frets 2–6
e|-----------------------------2-3-5-6-|
B|-------------------------3-5---------|
G|-------------------2-3-5-------------|
D|-------------2-4-5-------------------|
A|---------3-5-------------------------|
E|-2-3-5-6-----------------------------|
Position 3 · C shape frets 4–8
e|-----------------------------5-6-8-|
B|-----------------------5-7-8-------|
G|-------------------5-7-------------|
D|-----------4-5-7-8-----------------|
A|-------5-7-------------------------|
E|-5-6-8-----------------------------|
Position 4 · A shape frets 7–11
e|-----------------------------------8-10-|
B|---------------------------8-10-11------|
G|--------------------7-9-11--------------|
D|-------------7-8-10---------------------|
A|------7-9-10----------------------------|
E|-8-10-----------------------------------|
Position 5 · G shape frets 9–13
e|-----------------------------------------10-12-|
B|--------------------------------10-11-13-------|
G|------------------------9-11-12----------------|
D|------------------10-12------------------------|
A|-------9-10-12-13------------------------------|
E|-10-12-----------------------------------------|

How to play E Locrian Natural 2 on guitar

Find the root first: E is at fret 0 on the low E string and fret 7 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every E 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 0–4. 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 E
2 F#
♭3 G
4 A
♭5 Bb
♭6 C
♭7 D

Chords in E Locrian Natural 2

Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in E Locrian Natural 2; tap one to see its shapes.

Degree Chord 7th chord Function
i° Edim Em7b5 Tonic
ii° F#dim F#m7b5 Supertonic
♭iii Gm Gm(maj7) Mediant
iv Am Am7 Subdominant
♭V+ Bbaug Bbmaj7#5 Dominant
♭VI C C7 Submediant
♭VII D D7 Leading tone / subtonic

Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android

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This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.

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Questions

What notes are in the E Locrian Natural 2 Scale?
The E Locrian Natural 2 Scale has 7 notes: E, F#, G, A, Bb, C, D.
What chords are in the E Locrian Natural 2 Scale?
The chords of E Locrian Natural 2 are Edim (i°), F#dim (ii°), Gm (♭iii), Am (iv), Bbaug (♭V+), C (♭VI), D (♭VII).
What is the formula of the locrian natural 2 scale?
1 2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7, which is the step pattern W H W H W W W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Where do I play E Locrian Natural 2 on the guitar?
The root E is at fret 0 on the low E string and fret 7 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 0–4, and four more positions connect it up the neck.

Locrian Natural 2 Scale in every key

More scales in E