Also written Ionian, Rast or Bilawal
A♭ major uses the notes A♭, B♭, C, D♭, E♭, F, and G. Box 1 spans frets 0–4 and places the root on the sixth string.
A♭ major follows the whole-step, whole-step, half-step, whole-step, whole-step, whole-step, half-step pattern. The A♭ major pentatonic drops the fourth and seventh degrees. The D♭ and G add harmonic richness to the pentatonic sound.
A♭ major fits A♭ major and A♭ 5th chords. It also works over the key's diatonic chords like D♭ major and E♭ major. Use it for jazz, soul, and horn-driven rock.
Practise Box 1 first. The root on string 6, fret 4 keeps the scale in a comfortable low position.
A♭ major in box 1 runs from fret 0 to fret 4, 17 notes across 6 strings, from F on the low E string at fret 1 up to A♭ on the high e string at fret 4. The root falls on the low E string at fret 4, the G string at fret 1 and the high e string at fret 4.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 1, 3, 4 | F, G, A♭ |
| 5 (A) | 1, 3, 4 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 4 (D) | 1, 3 | E♭, F |
| 3 (G) | 0, 1, 3 | G, A♭, B♭ |
| 2 (B) | 1, 2, 4 | C, D♭, E♭ |
| 1 (e) | 1, 3, 4 | F, G, A♭ |
A♭ major in box 2 runs from fret 4 to fret 6, 12 notes across 6 strings, from A♭ on the low E string at fret 4 up to B♭ on the high e string at fret 6. The root falls on the low E string at fret 4, the D string at fret 6 and the high e string at fret 4.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 4, 6 | A♭, B♭ |
| 5 (A) | 4, 6 | D♭, E♭ |
| 4 (D) | 5, 6 | G, A♭ |
| 3 (G) | 5, 6 | C, D♭ |
| 2 (B) | 4, 6 | E♭, F |
| 1 (e) | 4, 6 | A♭, B♭ |
A♭ major in box 3 runs from fret 6 to fret 9, 15 notes across 6 strings, from B♭ on the low E string at fret 6 up to D♭ on the high e string at fret 9. The root falls on the D string at fret 6 and the B string at fret 9.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 6, 8, 9 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 5 (A) | 6, 8 | E♭, F |
| 4 (D) | 6, 8 | A♭, B♭ |
| 3 (G) | 6, 8 | D♭, E♭ |
| 2 (B) | 6, 8, 9 | F, G, A♭ |
| 1 (e) | 6, 8, 9 | B♭, C, D♭ |
A♭ major in box 4 runs from fret 8 to fret 11, 17 notes across 6 strings, from C on the low E string at fret 8 up to E♭ on the high e string at fret 11. The root falls on the A string at fret 11 and the B string at fret 9.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 8, 9, 11 | C, D♭, E♭ |
| 5 (A) | 8, 10, 11 | F, G, A♭ |
| 4 (D) | 8, 10, 11 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 3 (G) | 8, 10 | E♭, F |
| 2 (B) | 8, 9, 11 | G, A♭, B♭ |
| 1 (e) | 8, 9, 11 | C, D♭, E♭ |
A♭ major in box 5 runs from fret 11 to fret 14, 13 notes across 6 strings, from E♭ on the low E string at fret 11 up to F on the high e string at fret 13. The root falls on the A string at fret 11 and the G string at fret 13.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 11, 13 | E♭, F |
| 5 (A) | 11, 13 | A♭, B♭ |
| 4 (D) | 11, 13 | D♭, E♭ |
| 3 (G) | 12, 13 | G, A♭ |
| 2 (B) | 11, 13, 14 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 1 (e) | 11, 13 | E♭, F |
A♭ major, position 1 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 6 and runs from fret 1 to fret 6, three notes on each of 6 strings. The root falls on the low E string at fret 4, the G string at fret 1 and the high e string at fret 4.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 1, 3, 4 | F, G, A♭ |
| 5 (A) | 1, 3, 4 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 4 (D) | 1, 3, 5 | E♭, F, G |
| 3 (G) | 1, 3, 5 | A♭, B♭, C |
| 2 (B) | 2, 4, 6 | D♭, E♭, F |
| 1 (e) | 3, 4, 6 | G, A♭, B♭ |
A♭ major, position 2 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 7 and runs from fret 3 to fret 8, three notes on each of 6 strings. The root falls on the low E string at fret 4, the D string at fret 6 and the high e string at fret 4.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 3, 4, 6 | G, A♭, B♭ |
| 5 (A) | 3, 4, 6 | C, D♭, E♭ |
| 4 (D) | 3, 5, 6 | F, G, A♭ |
| 3 (G) | 3, 5, 6 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 2 (B) | 4, 6, 8 | E♭, F, G |
| 1 (e) | 4, 6, 8 | A♭, B♭, C |
A♭ major, position 3 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the root and runs from fret 4 to fret 9, three notes on each of 6 strings. The root falls on the low E string at fret 4, the D string at fret 6 and the B string at fret 9.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 4, 6, 8 | A♭, B♭, C |
| 5 (A) | 4, 6, 8 | D♭, E♭, F |
| 4 (D) | 5, 6, 8 | G, A♭, B♭ |
| 3 (G) | 5, 6, 8 | C, D♭, E♭ |
| 2 (B) | 6, 8, 9 | F, G, A♭ |
| 1 (e) | 6, 8, 9 | B♭, C, D♭ |
A♭ major, position 4 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 2 and runs from fret 6 to fret 11, three notes on each of 6 strings. The root falls on the D string at fret 6 and the B string at fret 9.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 6, 8, 9 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 5 (A) | 6, 8, 10 | E♭, F, G |
| 4 (D) | 6, 8, 10 | A♭, B♭, C |
| 3 (G) | 6, 8, 10 | D♭, E♭, F |
| 2 (B) | 8, 9, 11 | G, A♭, B♭ |
| 1 (e) | 8, 9, 11 | C, D♭, E♭ |
A♭ major, position 5 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 3 and runs from fret 8 to fret 13, three notes on each of 6 strings. The root falls on the A string at fret 11 and the B string at fret 9.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 8, 9, 11 | C, D♭, E♭ |
| 5 (A) | 8, 10, 11 | F, G, A♭ |
| 4 (D) | 8, 10, 11 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 3 (G) | 8, 10, 12 | E♭, F, G |
| 2 (B) | 9, 11, 13 | A♭, B♭, C |
| 1 (e) | 9, 11, 13 | D♭, E♭, F |
A♭ major, position 6 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 4 and runs from fret 9 to fret 15, three notes on each of 6 strings. The root falls on the A string at fret 11 and the G string at fret 13.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 9, 11, 13 | D♭, E♭, F |
| 5 (A) | 10, 11, 13 | G, A♭, B♭ |
| 4 (D) | 10, 11, 13 | C, D♭, E♭ |
| 3 (G) | 10, 12, 13 | F, G, A♭ |
| 2 (B) | 11, 13, 14 | B♭, C, D♭ |
| 1 (e) | 11, 13, 15 | E♭, F, G |
A♭ major, position 7 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 5 and runs from fret 11 to fret 16, three notes on each of 6 strings. The root falls on the A string at fret 11, the G string at fret 13 and the high e string at fret 16.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 11, 13, 15 | E♭, F, G |
| 5 (A) | 11, 13, 15 | A♭, B♭, C |
| 4 (D) | 11, 13, 15 | D♭, E♭, F |
| 3 (G) | 12, 13, 15 | G, A♭, B♭ |
| 2 (B) | 13, 14, 16 | C, D♭, E♭ |
| 1 (e) | 13, 15, 16 | F, G, A♭ |
Every chord here uses only notes from the scale. Tap one to open it.
A♭ major contains A♭, B♭, C, D♭, E♭, F, and G. The scale has four flats. It is also spelled G♯ in enharmonic notation for the same sounding root.
A♭ major works over A♭ major and A♭ 5th chords. It also fits D♭ major and E♭ major. The seventh degree, G, leads strongly to A♭.
The relative minor of A♭ major is F minor. Both scales share the same key signature of four flats. F minor starts on the sixth degree of A♭ major.