Scales
G# Mixolydian Scale
G# · A# · B# · C# · D# · E# · F#
The fifth mode — major with a flattened seventh, and the scale that fits a dominant chord.
G# Mixolydian Scale
G# · A# · B# · C# · D# · E# · F#
Fingering on the piano
| Hand | Fingering | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right hand | 3 4 1 2 3 1 2 3 | G# · A# · B# · C# · D# · E# · F# · G# | |
| Left hand | 3 2 1 3 2 1 4 3 | G# · A# · B# · C# · D# · E# · F# · G# |
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
G# Mixolydian is made of the notes G# · A# · B# · C# · D# · E# · F#. 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 G# Mixolydian gives the chords of the key; the roman numeral names the degree each is built on.
Triads
Related scales
The scales G# 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.
C# MajorC# · D# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B#
Parent scale: the major scale this is a rotation of
Ab MixolydianAb · Bb · C · Db · Eb · F · Gb
The same sound, spelled from the enharmonic root
Scales inside it
G# Major PentatonicG# · A# · B# · D# · E#
Every note of this scale is in G# Mixolydian.
G# Mixolydian PentatonicG# · B# · C# · D# · F#
Every note of this scale is in G# Mixolydian.
G# RitusenG# · A# · C# · D# · E#
Every note of this scale is in G# Mixolydian.
G# EgyptianG# · A# · C# · D# · F#
Every note of this scale is in G# Mixolydian.
G# PiongioG# · A# · C# · D# · E# · F#
Every note of this scale is in G# Mixolydian.
Scales that contain it
G# Bebop MinorG# · A# · B · B# · C# · D# · E# · F#
Contains every note of G# Mixolydian.
G# Composite BluesG# · A# · B · B# · C# · D · D# · E# · F#
Contains every note of G# Mixolydian.
Understanding G# 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.
G# Mixolydian and Ab Mixolydian are the same sound spelled two ways; both have a page here, and each links to the other. Ab Mixolydian
How it is built
On G# the mode is G# · A# · B# · C# · D# · E# · F#, 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 G# Mixolydian?
- G# Mixolydian contains G# · A# · B# · C# · D# · E# · F#. 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 G# 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 3 4 1 2 3 1 2 3, with 1 as the thumb. Every position plays when you press it.
- What chords are in the key of G# Mixolydian?
- Stacking thirds on each degree of G# Mixolydian gives G# (I), A#m (ii), B#dim (iii°), C# (IV), D#m (v), E#m (vi), F# (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.