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Fig. 1 · Eb Locrian · first 12 frets

ukulele scale

E♭ Locrian

E♭1F♭♭2G♭♭3A♭4B♭♭♭5C♭♭6D♭♭7

The only mode of the major scale whose fifth is diminished, which is why its tonic chord cannot rest.

The same sounds spelled from the other side are D♯ Locrian.

on guitaron piano

Written out

Fig. 2 · Eb Locrian, ascending

Every accidental is written in, rather than left to a key signature, so the letters can be read one at a time.

The step pattern

E♭HF♭WG♭WA♭HB♭♭WC♭WD♭WE♭

What is true of it

E♭ Locrian is E♭, F♭, G♭, A♭, B♭♭, C♭ and D♭, and back to E♭.

Its steps are H – W – W – H – W – W – W, where W is a whole step and H a half.

Written correctly it needs 8 alterations, B♭♭ among them. That is what the letters force, and it is also why nobody writes music in this key: the same notes spelled from the other side are easier to read.

On the same tonic, E♭ Phrygian differs from it by exactly one note.

Across the first twelve frets of the ukulele its notes fall in 30 places, which is what makes a scale a shape rather than a list.

Chords made only of these notes

D♭mminorD♭m7minor seventhE♭dimdiminishedE♭m7♭5half-diminished seventhG♭mminorG♭m7minor seventhA♭mminorA♭m7minor seventh

Found by testing every chord in the catalogue against these 7 sounds, not chosen.

Other scales on E♭

E♭ DorianmodeE♭ PhrygianmodeE♭ LydianmodeE♭ majormajorE♭ natural minorminorE♭ harmonic minorminor

C locC♯ locD♭ locD locE locF locF♯ locG♭ locall 374