The melodic minor scale modes

The melodic minor scale is a great way to extend your musical vocuabulary. Like the major scale the melodic minor has seven unique modes which can create some really interesting sounds. It is sometimes referred to as the jazz minor scale becuase its modes produce some of the most commonly heard jazz lines. The melodic minor, lydian b7 and superlocrian modes are the most important of these jazz sounds.

As always take it slowly and try to learn these scales in different keys.

The melodic minor scale is a major scale with a minor third note.

Melodic minor scale modes

Mode	Chord	Description
Melodic minor	Cmin/maj7	This is the first mode of the melodic minor scale. It has a strange jazz like minor sound.
Dorian b2	Dm7	This is the second mode of the melodic minor scale. Although rarely used it is worth taking the time to get to know this sound.
Lydian #5	Ebmaj7#5	The third mode of the melodic minor scale is a great sound for playing over Maj7#5 chords. It has a dreamy augmented sound to it.
Lydian b7	F7b5	The lydian dominant is a great modern sound for playing over 7b5 chords.
Mixolydian b6	G7	The fith mode of the melodic minor is often seen as having an exotic sound. Try it over a dominant vamp to hear the sound.
Aeolian b5	Am7b5	The aeolian b5 mode is a great alternative to the locrian mode for m7b5 chords.
Superlocrian	B Altered	The final mode has every alteration for a dominant chord. Subsequently it can be played over any altered dominant chord for an outside jazz sound.

The Melodic Minor Scale

The modern melodic minor scale is a great choice for playing over Min/Maj7 chords. It is rarely used in rock and metal but is one of the most frequently used jazz scales. Like the major scale, the melodic minor also has seven modes.

It is made up from the intervals

1, 3, b3, 4, 5, 6, 7

In the key of C this translates as

C, D, Eb, F, G, A, B

G Melodic Minor Scale Tab

C Melodic Minor Chords

This scale is usually played over a min/maj7 chord but you can also try playing it over a simple Dm7 chord to create some unusal tension.

The Dorian b2 mode

The Dorian b2 is the second mode of the melodic minor scale. Its a really unusual sound and would typically be used as a substitue for the phrygian mode over a b9sus chord.

The Dorian b2 mode is made up from the following intervals

1, b2, b3, 4, 5, 6, b7

In the key of C this translates as

C, Db, Eb, F, G, A, Bb

This is not really a sound you would hear very often but is worth knowing if you want to create some really crazy lines.

You would usually hear this mode played over the following chords

b9sus, 7(b9sus), 13(b9sus)

The Lydian #5 mode

The Lydian #5 or Lydian augmented mode is a really interesting scale for playing over a Maj7#5 chord. It is the third mode of the melodic minor scale.

1, 2, 3, #4, #5, 6, 7

In the key of C this translates as

C, D, E, F#, G#, A, B

This scale can produce some really nice sounds when played over Maj7#5 chords and even a Maj7 if you can handle the tension.

This mode can be played over the following chords

Maj7#5, Maj13#5, Maj7(#5, #11)

Fusion players like Larry Carlton are a good source of inspiration for these sounds

The Lydian dominant mode

The Lydian dominant mode is used quite often over altered dominant chords. It is the fourth mode of the melodic minor scale and has a nice modern sound to it.

1, 2, 3, #4, 5, 6, b7

In the key of C this translates as

C, D, E, F#, G, A, Bb

This mode has a real jazz fusion quality. Along with the Superlocrian this is probably the most useful mode of the melodic minor scale. Try using it as an interesting substitute for the mixolydian mode over the V chord.

You can play this mode over the following chords

Dominant 7, Dominant 7b5, Dominant 9, Dominant 7#11

The Mixolydian b6 mode

The fifth mode of the melodic minor scale is the Mixolydian b6. This is another good choice when playing over altered dominant chords. The scale itself sounds kind of exotic.

The scale is made up of the following intervals

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, b6, b7

In the key of C this translates as

C, D, E, F, G, Ab, Bb

You would use this scale over the following chords

Dominant 7, sus 7, 7(#5)

The Aeolian b5 mode

The aeolian b5 mode is the sixth mode of the melodic minor scale and can also be seen as a locrian with a natural second. You should use this mode over minor 7b5 chords.

It is made up of the following intervals

1, 2, b3, 4, b5, b6, b7

In the key of C this translates as

C, D, Eb, F, Gb, Ab, Bb

You can use this scale over the following chords

m7b5

The Superlocrian mode

This is the seventh mode of the melodic minor scale. This is a frequently heard sound in the world of jazz. It is known as the altered scale as it contains all of the dominant chord tone alterations. Subsequently it is used to create interesting outside lines over altered dominant chords.

This scale is made of the intervals

1, b2, b3, b4, b5, b6, b7

In the key of C this translates as

C, Db, Eb, F, Gb, Ab, Bb

As you can see this scale contains a large number of alterations which give it a unique “outside” sound.

Try playing this scale over the V chord in a 2-5-1 progression. You can really spell out the altered sound with this mode.

This scale can be used over any altered dominant chord. Typically it would be used over the following altered chords

Dom7, Dom7#5, Dom7b9, Dom7b5, Dom7#9 etc.

Listen to jazz players like Joe Pass and you will hear this scale used in almost every tune

That’s it for this lesson. Take it slowly as there is a lot of information to take in. Becuase some of these sounds are so unusual to most people it can take time to really appreciate them. Good luck.