Scales
C# Mixolydian Scale
C# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B
The fifth mode — major with a flattened seventh, and the scale that fits a dominant chord.
C# Mixolydian Scale
C# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B
Fingering on the piano
| Hand | Fingering | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right hand | 2 3 1 2 3 4 1 2 | C# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B · C# | |
| Left hand | 3 2 1 4 3 2 1 3 | C# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B · C# |
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
C# Mixolydian is made of the notes C# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B. Each is a degree counted from the tonic, and the gaps between them are the step pattern W W H W W H W.
Read on: scale degrees · building any scale
Chords in this key
Stacking thirds on each degree of C# Mixolydian gives the chords of the key; the roman numeral names the degree each is built on.
Related scales
The scales C# Mixolydian shares its notes with: the one it is a rotation of, the relative and parallel keys, the scales inside it and the ones that contain it.
F# MajorF# · G# · A# · B · C# · D# · E#
Parent scale: the major scale this is a rotation of
Db MixolydianDb · Eb · F · Gb · Ab · Bb · Cb
The same sound, spelled from the enharmonic root
Scales inside it
C# Major PentatonicC# · D# · E# · G# · A#
Every note of this scale is in C# Mixolydian.
C# Mixolydian PentatonicC# · E# · F# · G# · B
Every note of this scale is in C# Mixolydian.
C# RitusenC# · D# · F# · G# · A#
Every note of this scale is in C# Mixolydian.
C# EgyptianC# · D# · F# · G# · B
Every note of this scale is in C# Mixolydian.
C# PiongioC# · D# · F# · G# · A# · B
Every note of this scale is in C# Mixolydian.
Scales that contain it
C# BebopC# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B · B#
Contains every note of C# Mixolydian.
C# Bebop MinorC# · D# · E · E# · F# · G# · A# · B
Contains every note of C# Mixolydian.
C# Composite BluesC# · D# · E · E# · F# · G · G# · A# · B
Contains every note of C# Mixolydian.
C# ChromaticC# · D · D# · E · E# · F# · G · G# · A · A# · B · B#
Contains every note of C# Mixolydian.
Understanding C# Mixolydian
Names and spellings
A mode is named by the note it starts on, not by the major scale it comes from: D Dorian uses the notes of C major, but its tonic is D and its chords are built from D. The same mode name on another tonic is a different scale with the same pattern.
C# Mixolydian and Db Mixolydian are the same sound spelled two ways; both have a page here, and each links to the other. Db Mixolydian
How it is built
On C# the mode is C# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B, following the step pattern W W H W W H W. Against the major scale on the same tonic, only the seventh degree differs: mixolydian flattens it.
Flattening the seventh removes the leading tone, so the scale loses its pull toward the tonic and gains a dominant-seventh chord on the first degree instead.
How it is used
It is the sound of blues-rock, of Celtic and folk melody, and of any riff built on a dominant seventh that never resolves. It is also the default scale over a V7 chord in a functional progression.
The ♭VII chord it produces — a major triad a whole step below the tonic — is the other giveaway, and it is everywhere in rock.
Learn this properly
Chapter 9: ModesCommon questions
- What notes are in C# Mixolydian?
- C# Mixolydian contains C# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B. Find every scale that contains these notes with the scale finder.
- What is the difference between mixolydian and major?
- One note: mixolydian flattens the seventh degree.
- What chord does mixolydian fit over?
- The dominant seventh. It is the mode that spells that chord out exactly.
- How do I play C# Mixolydian?
- 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, with 1 as the thumb. Every position plays when you press it.
- What chords are in the key of C# Mixolydian?
- Stacking thirds on each degree of C# Mixolydian gives C# (I), D#m (ii), E#dim (iii°), F# (IV), G#m (v), A#m (vi), B (VII). These are the diatonic chords of the key, the ones a song in this key uses most; the harmony band on this page lists them with the seventh chords built the same way.