B♭ blues scale on banjo
The B♭ blues scale has six notes: B♭, D♭, E♭, E, F and A♭ (1 ♭3 4 ♭5 5 ♭7). The minor pentatonic with the flat 5th added: the blue note. Use it on the way between the 4th and the 5th rather than holding it.
| Note | B♭ | D♭ | E♭ | E | F | A♭ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interval | 1 (root) | ♭3 | 4 | ♭5 | 5 | ♭7 |
| Step to the next | 1½ | whole | half | half | 1½ | whole |
3 positions to learn it in
Each stretch here is a few frets you can play without moving the hand: the open position, then from the root on the lowest string. Press Play to hear each one, up and back down.
Chords that go with the B♭ blues scale
The chords on each note of the scale that use only its notes. Play over any of them and every note fits; B♭ (B♭m) is where it sounds at home.
| On the | Chord | Seventh chord |
|---|---|---|
| root (B♭) | B♭mhome | B♭m7home |
| ♭3 (D♭) | D♭daylight | – |
| 4 (E♭) | E♭sus4the door | – |
| ♭7 (A♭) | A♭sus4heroic | – |
Scales with the same notes
Compare the B♭ minor pentatonic scale, its minor pentatonic, without the blue note.
Questions
What notes are in the B♭ blues scale?
B♭, D♭, E♭, E, F and A♭. Its intervals from the root are 1 ♭3 4 ♭5 5 ♭7, and the steps between its notes are W+H W H H W+H W (W a whole step, H a half step).
What chords go with the B♭ blues scale?
The chords made only of its notes: B♭m, D♭, E♭sus4 and A♭sus4, and as seventh chords B♭m7. B♭ is home: B♭m is the chord it sounds most settled over.
The blues scale in every key
Other scales in B♭
B♭ majorB♭ minorB♭ minor pentatonicB♭ major pentatonicB♭ DorianB♭ MixolydianB♭ LydianB♭ PhrygianB♭ harmonic minorB♭ melodic minorB♭ Phrygian dominant
Practise it on a sheet of your own in the practice sheet maker, with a metronome and a drone. Every scale: banjo scales. This scale on guitar, bass, ukulele and mandolin.