My Guitar Notes

B lydian scale

The fourth mode of the major scale: a major scale with a raised fourth. Everything else matches the major scale.

Root
B
Scale
Lydian
Type
mode, mode 4 of seven
Notes
B C# D# E# F# G# A#
Notes in the scale
7
Degree formula
1 2 3 #4 5 6 7
Semitones from the root
0 2 4 6 7 9 11
Step pattern
W W W H W W H
Parent major scale
F# major
Key signature of this root
B major / G# minor · F# C# G# D# A#
Written use
Named 1 2 3 #4 5 6 7. Its tonic triad is major, and the chord on the second degree is major rather than minor.

Notes and degrees

Each degree of the scale, its note name in this key, and its distance from the root in semitones.

DegreeNoteSemitonesInterval from the root
1B0Perfect unisontonic
2C#2Major second
3D#4Major third
#4E#6Tritone
5F#7Perfect fifth
6G#9Major sixth
7A#11Major seventh

Positions on the guitar

The five windows below are computed, not copied from a shape chart. The script locates the lowest occurrence of B on each of the five upper strings within the first twelve frets and takes a five-fret window centred on it. Because a scale repeats every twelve frets, these five windows cover the whole neck; the same sequence returns an octave higher. The positions are numbered from the lowest fret upwards, so position 1 is always the window nearest the nut and position 5 the window nearest the twelfth fret.

Position 1

Root on the 2nd string B3 at fret 0. 10 notes of the scale inside this window.

String012
1st (highest) string E4FF#
2nd string B3BC#
3rd string G3G#
4th string D3D#
5th string A2A#B
6th string E2FF#

Position 2

Root on the 5th string A2 at fret 2. 18 notes of the scale inside this window.

String01234
1st (highest) string E4FF#G#
2nd string B3BC#D#
3rd string G3G#A#B
4th string D3D#FF#
5th string A2A#BC#
6th string E2FF#G#

Position 3

Root on the 3rd string G3 at fret 4. 18 notes of the scale inside this window.

String23456
1st (highest) string E4F#G#A#
2nd string B3C#D#F
3rd string G3A#BC#
4th string D3FF#G#
5th string A2BC#D#
6th string E2F#G#A#

Position 4

Root on the 6th string E2 at fret 7. 17 notes of the scale inside this window.

String56789
1st (highest) string E4A#BC#
2nd string B3FF#G#
3rd string G3C#D#
4th string D3G#A#B
5th string A2D#FF#
6th string E2A#BC#

Position 5

Root on the 4th string D3 at fret 9. 18 notes of the scale inside this window.

String7891011
1st (highest) string E4BC#D#
2nd string B3F#G#A#
3rd string G3D#FF#
4th string D3A#BC#
5th string A2FF#G#
6th string E2BC#D#

Read the grid as a chord diagram: the top row is the first string. Degrees appear in the notes and degrees table above; a filled cell is a note of the scale, and the shaded cell is the tonic.

Related keys and modes

Related