Dominant Bebop Scale

Thedominant bebop scaleis one of the most commonly used and studied melodic sounds in jazz guitar.

Used by countless players over the decades, both consciously and subconsciously, this 8-note scale can
be used to add a bit ofBebop tension and releaseto your improvised lines and phrases.

In this lesson, you will learnhow to build, apply and playthe dominant bebop scale.

This will provide you with the knowledge and material necessary to add this important scale to yourjazz
guitar soloing concept, taking your playing to the next level in the process.

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What is the Dominant Bebop Scale

To begin our study of thisimportant jazz scale, lets take a look at how you build a dominant bebop
scale.

The easiest way to think about this scale is that it is simply aMixolydian scalewith an added major
7thinterval between the b7 and R, creating an 8-note scale.

Mixolydian R-2-3-4-5-6-b7-R

Dominant Bebop R-2-3-4-5-6-b7-7-R

Here is how thatdifferencelooks on the fretboard.

Since both of these scales are closely related, you can apply the dominant bebop scale in the same way
you apply the Mixolydian scale,over 7thchords.

Try putting on aG7 backing trackand playing up and down both of these scales in a row to hear how
they sound the same, yet different, over that chord.

From there, you can begin soloing over the same backing track using both scales to hear how they sound
in comparison when applied to animprovisational situation.

Dominant Bebop Scale Fingerings 1 Octave

Now that you know how to build a dominant bebop scale, and apply it to your soloing lines over
7thchords, its time totake this theory knowledge to the fretboard.

Here are 12 different one-octave scale shapes that you can use to practice the bebop scale in all
keysacross the fretboard.

To begin, here are four one-octave shapes that begin with yourindex finger.

Now, here are four one-octave shapes thatbegin with your middle finger, with the exception of the 3rd-
string root, which begins with the index finger.


Lastly, here are four shapes that begin with yourpinky finger.

One-octave shapes are essential when learning to solo overfast-moving jazz changes.

Even a jazz blues chord progression has two key changes in the first three bars, F7-Bb7-F7 for example,
where one-octave shapes will allow you tomove quickly and confidently between changes.

When you have a few of these one-octave fingerings under your belt, try putting on a backing track that
hasF7 for 1 bar and Bb7 for 1 bar, moving between these chords in your lines.

From there you can change the keys or add new keys as you begin to apply one-octave bebop scales to
yourimprovised lines and phrases.

Dominant Bebop Scale Fingerings 2 Octave

Though one-octave bebop scale fingerings are essential for fast-moving chord changes, there are times
when you will want tostretch out and cover more of the fretboardwith your lines.

To help you expand this scale on the fretboard, here are four commonly used dominant bebop scale
fingeringswritten out across two octaves.

As well, for those that are interested in players such asKurt Rosenwinkel and Alan Holdsworth, here
are two four-note-per-string scale shapes that can help you play the dominant bebop scale across a wide
stretch of the fretboard.


Once you have learned these shapes, try putting on a 7thchord backing track in various keys and using
the two-octave scale shapes tobuild your lines and phrasesas you take these fingerings from a
technical to improvisational setting in your workout.

3 Dominant Bebop Licks

To help you get started with taking the dominant bebop scale to an improvisational setting, here arethree
classic bebop licksto work out in 12 keys, and then apply to tunes you are working on in the practice
room.

The first lick uses a G dominant bebop scale tooutline a G7 chordover a two-bar phrase.

Click to hear

Vm P

Here, you will apply the G dominantbebop scale to the V7 chordin a ii-V-I progression in the key of C
major.

Click to hear

Vm P

Lastly, here is a lick that uses the F and Bb dominant bebop scales over the first four bars of anF blues
progression.

Click to hear

Vm P

Once you have worked these licks out and begun applying them to your solos, try writing outthree
dominant bebop licks of your ownto practice in a similar manner.

Dominant Bebop Scale Resources

Now that you have worked out the fingerings for these one and two-octave bebop scales, and checked
out 3 common licks, here are a few links to further resources that you can use to expand your practice of
thisimportant jazz guitar soloing device.

Master Dominant 7th Chords

21 Bebop Scale Patterns

Bebop Scales: Definitions and Applications

The 9-Note Bebop Scale

Alan Holdsworth Bebop Scale Fingering

Mixolydian Scale for Jazz Guitar