A new favorite scale

[mirth]

Here's a scale worth exploring, it's so incredibly simple too that it's amazing I never tried it. Basically, imagine a minor pentatonic: A C D E G, but raise the 3rd....so it's A C# D E G.

I love how changing one note of something completely changes the character of a scale.

You likely have heard this scale before, if you’ve never tried it, as it appears to be very prominent in Mahuvishnu and Shakti music. I noticed it immediately upon playing it. I’ve heard it called Mixolydian Pentatonic (which makes sense since it’s 1 3 4 5 b7), however, most places I’ve seen call something else Mixolydian pentatonic (1 2 3 5 b7). Saying that, this scale sounds nothing like a mixolydian scale to me, which is a fairly “in” sounding scale, this scale sounds “exotic”.

What is really lovely about this particular scale is the min2nd, gives a whole other flair. It does rather sound like an Indian flavored color.

Maybe this is old hat for some of you, but I recently started playing with it and quite like the new addition to my arsenal.

[mirth]

Some uses for the scale:

If we look at the A variety: A C# D E G, it could be used for the following chords/etc…

A major,
A7

Bmin11

C#alt (R, b9, #9, #11, b13)

Dsusmaj7

Emin13

Faug

Gmaj#11

[Infinite Ego]

Mixo-Pento

[asb]

Oh cool - definitely working this into practice regimen for sure.

[Infinite Ego]

isn't every new favorite scale that is not the chromatic scale just the chromatic scale - something ?

[mirth]

So they say

[asb]

"The Yngwie assimilation scale?" Well seriously this gets into the whole modes thing that you take an existing scale you know well and run it down a step or a step and a half or two steps or...