F Phrygian Dominant Scale, Low on the Neck
F, Gb, A, Bb, C, Db and Eb make up the F Phrygian dominant scale. With the root on the 1st fret of the low E string, the lowest box needs no stretch beyond the nut and is a good first look at the sound.
The same shape shifted up four frets gives you A Phrygian dominant, and the notes themselves are Bb harmonic minor from its fifth degree. To train your ear to the flat second, run through a three notes per string exercise.
Play the F phrygian dominant scale
Use the step menu in the player to switch between the single-string run and the box shapes.
Notes of the F phrygian dominant scale
| Note | Degree | Interval | Semitones from root |
|---|---|---|---|
| F | 1 | Root | 0 |
| Gb | b2 | Minor 2nd | 1 |
| A | 3 | Major 3rd | 4 |
| Bb | 4 | Perfect 4th | 5 |
| C | 5 | Perfect 5th | 7 |
| Db | b6 | Minor 6th | 8 |
| Eb | b7 | Minor 7th | 10 |
Structure
F phrygian dominant scale notes:
How the phrygian dominant scale is built:
The phrygian dominant scale is built from the degrees 1 b2 3 4 5 b6 b7, which gives the step pattern H-W+H-H-W-H-W-W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Counting in semitones from the root: 0, 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10. That makes it a 7-note scale.
It is mode 5 of the Harmonic Minor Scale, so both scales share the same notes from a different starting point.
It is also known as Jewish Scale, Ahava Raba, Freygish and Spanish Phrygian.
F Phrygian Dominant Scale Guitar Patterns
Static diagrams of every position shown in the player above.
On one string (low E)
Box pattern — position 1
Box pattern — position 2
Box pattern — position 3
Box pattern — position 4
Box pattern — position 5
3 notes per string — position 1
3 notes per string — position 2
3 notes per string — position 3
3 notes per string — position 4
3 notes per string — position 5
Chords in the F phrygian dominant scale
Stacking thirds on each degree of the scale gives these chords.
Related modes
These scales share the same notes as the phrygian dominant scale, starting from a different degree.
The phrygian dominant scale in other keys
Created by
Giancarlo is a musician (teaching guitar since 2000), software engineer, AI consultant and published researcher
