A Mixolydian b6 Scale

What is the A Mixolydian b6 Scale?

Mixolydian ♭6 is the fifth mode of the melodic minor scale, blending the dominant ♭7 with a darkened ♭6 that gives it a bittersweet, almost cinematic quality. It works beautifully over dominant chords with altered extensions and shows up frequently in film scoring and Hindu-influenced fusion. Here's how the A Mixolydian b6 Scale lays out on the fretboard.

Notes and Positions

Mixolydian with a flat 6th; 5th mode of melodic minor. Also called Hindu or Melodic Major. On bass, the fretboard view helps you visualize where the important tones sit for building lines across positions. Use a finger-per-fret approach first, then add shifts only when the line needs a wider range. In the key of A, the notes are: A, B, C#, D, E, F, G.

How to Use It

You'll often hear it in Jazz, Indian Classical, and Dominant chords. A good way to internalize the sound is to sing the root, then sing a few scale degrees before you play them.

Practice root-on-E and root-on-A boxes separately, then connect them with one clean position shift. Use the interactive fretboard above to spot repeats of the same note on different strings and frets.