Bebop Scale
Bebop scales are eight-note scales: an ordinary seven-note scale plus a chromatic passing note. Played in even eighth notes, the chord tones fall on the beats. The dominant bebop scale is Mixolydian with an added major seventh, the major bebop scale is major with an added augmented fifth.
- Notes
- eight: seven scale notes plus a passing note
- Dominant bebop
- Mixolydian + passing note between ♭7 and the tonic
- Major bebop
- major + passing note between 5 and 6 (♯5)
- Purpose
- chord tones on the beats
- Name
- coined by the jazz educator David Baker
Eight notes instead of seven
A bebop scale arises when a chromatic passing note is added to a seven-note scale. The name goes back to the jazz educator David Baker, who observed how often musicians of the bebop era played such lines. Barry Harris developed the concept further.
Why eight notes?
A scale with eight notes fits exactly into a bar of 4/4 in eighth notes. Played continuously, the most important chord tones always fall on the beats, the notes in between on the “ands”. With seven notes this does not work out: the chord tones slip between the beats.
Dominant bebop scale on C, descending in eighth notes
The passing note is B, between B♭ and C. The notes on the beats are marked: C, B♭, G, E and C again. These are the notes of the chord C7.
For comparison: Mixolydian without a passing note
With only seven notes everything shifts: the beats now fall on C, A, F and D. Only C is a chord tone of C7; the others fall between the beats.
Major bebop scale on C, descending
Here the passing note A♭ (enharmonically equivalent to G♯) is inserted between A and G. On the beats are C, A, G and E, the notes of C major with an added sixth (C6).
Two common forms
The dominant bebop scale is based on Mixolydian and gets a passing note between the minor seventh and the tonic, on C that is B between B♭ and C. It fits the dominant seventh chord. The major bebop scale is based on the major scale and gets a passing note between the fifth and sixth degrees.
| Scale | Basis | Added note | Notes on C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dominant bebop | Mixolydian | major seventh (between ♭7 and the tonic) | C D E F G A B♭ B |
| Major bebop | major (Ionian) | augmented fifth (between 5 and 6) | C D E F G G♯ (A♭) A B |
Common mistakes
- Accenting the passing note: It belongs between the beats; the weight lies on the chord tones.
- Starting in the middle of the scale and losing your place: The alignment works when a chord tone starts on the beat.
- Confusing the bebop scale and the blues scale: The blues scale has six notes and different degrees; the bebop scale has eight.
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Related terms
BebopMixolydianDominant seventh chordJazzChromaticismImprovisationBlues scaleIonian
Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 4 October 2026
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