Scales
Ab Messiaen's Mode #3 Scale
Ab · Bb · Cb · C · D · Eb · Fb · Gb · G
Ab Messiaen's Mode #3 is a scale built on Ab with the notes Ab · Bb · Cb · C · D · Eb · Fb · Gb · G.
Ab Messiaen's Mode #3 Scale
Ab · Bb · Cb · C · D · Eb · Fb · Gb · G
Fingering on the piano
| Hand | Fingering | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right hand | 2 3 1 2 3 4 1 2 1 2 | Ab · Bb · Cb · C · D · Eb · Fb · Gb · G · Ab | |
| Left hand | 3 2 1 4 3 2 1 2 1 3 | Ab · Bb · Cb · C · D · Eb · Fb · Gb · G · Ab |
One octave ascending; 1 is the thumb. A standard fingering, not the only one.
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Scale degrees
Ab Messiaen's Mode #3 is made of the notes Ab · Bb · Cb · C · D · Eb · Fb · Gb · G. Each is a degree counted from the tonic, and the gaps between them are the step pattern W H H W H H W H H.
Read on: scale degrees · building any scale
Related scales
Ab Messiaen's Mode #3 is a selection of notes from larger scales rather than a seven-note scale of its own, so it has no chords of its own: it takes them from the scales that contain it, listed here with the scales it contains and its related keys.
Scales inside it
Ab HirajoshiAb · Bb · Cb · Eb · Fb
Every note of this scale is in Ab Messiaen's Mode #3.
Ab Lydian PentatonicAb · C · D · Eb · G
Every note of this scale is in Ab Messiaen's Mode #3.
Ab Flat Six PentatonicAb · Bb · C · Eb · Fb
Every note of this scale is in Ab Messiaen's Mode #3.
Ab Lydian Dominant PentatonicAb · C · D · Eb · Gb
Every note of this scale is in Ab Messiaen's Mode #3.
Ab AugmentedAb · B · C · Eb · E · G
Every note of this scale is in Ab Messiaen's Mode #3.
Ab Whole ToneAb · Bb · C · D · E · F#
Every note of this scale is in Ab Messiaen's Mode #3.
Common questions
- How do I play Ab Messiaen's Mode #3?
- On guitar start with the 1st position, played from the lowest string upward; the instrument panel on this page shows its frets and the positions further up the neck. On the piano the right hand ascends 2 3 1 2 3 4 1 2 1 2, with 1 as the thumb. Every position plays when you press it.
- What notes are in Ab Messiaen's Mode #3?
- Ab Messiaen's Mode #3 contains the notes Ab · Bb · Cb · C · D · Eb · Fb · Gb · G, measured from the tonic Ab as the intervals 1P, 2M, 3m, 3M, 4A, 5P, 6m, 7m, 7M. Play them in order for the scale: every note on this page sounds when you tap it, and the step pattern under the degrees shows the distance from each note to the next.
- What is the formula of Ab Messiaen's Mode #3?
- From Ab the steps run W H H W H H W H H, where a whole step is two frets or two keys and a half step one. Apply the same pattern from any other note and you get the same scale on that root, which is why every root of this scale has a page here.