E PhrygianScale

Formula

H W W W H W W 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7
The family

E Phrygian on the chromatic circle

E Phrygian is the 3rd mode of the Major family. Pick another note on the circle to open the scale that starts there.

W W H W W W H ♭6 CI Ionian ♭7 DII Dorian 1 EIII Phrygian ♭2 FIV Lydian ♭3 GV Mixolydian 4 AVI Aeolian 5 BVII Locrian E Phrygian
The whole neck

E Phrygian across the fretboard

Every note of the scale up to the 16th fret, named by its degree. The root is a ring. Step through the five CAGED positions one at a time in the scale library.

3 5 7 9 12 15 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 ♭2 ♭3
Harmony

Chords in E Phrygian

Stack every other note of the scale from each degree and you get its chords. Open any of them in the chord library.

DegreeChordNotes
iEm7E G B D
♭IIFmaj7F A C E
♭IIIG7G B D F
ivAm7A C E G
v°Bm7♭5B D F A
♭VICmaj7C E G B
♭viiDm7D F A C
Context

Where E Phrygian fits

Dark minor with a ♭2: metal riffs, Spanish-flavoured music and modal jazz. Over a minor chord when the ♭2 is meant to be heard.

E Phrygian is mode 3 of the major family. The same notes played from each of its other degrees give the family's other modes:

Move one note by a half step and you get a different scale:

Phrygian scale in every key

E Phrygian scale questions

What notes are in the E Phrygian scale?

E F G A B C D. As degrees from the root: 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7.

What is the E Phrygian scale formula?

1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7, or in steps between the notes, H W W W H W W (W is a whole step of two frets, H a half step of one fret, 1½ three frets).

How do you play the E Phrygian scale on guitar?

This page draws every note of E Phrygian up to the 16th fret, each named by its degree with the root as a ring. To learn it a few frets at a time, open it in the scale library and step through its five CAGED positions, from the E shape to the D shape to the C shape to the A shape to the G shape.

What chords are in the E Phrygian scale?

Em7 (i), Fmaj7 (♭II), G7 (♭III), Am7 (iv), Bm7♭5 (v°), Cmaj7 (♭VI), Dm7 (♭vii).

When is the E Phrygian scale used?

Dark minor with a ♭2: metal riffs, Spanish-flavoured music and modal jazz. Over a minor chord when the ♭2 is meant to be heard.