Phrygian dominant scale
In music, the Phrygian dominant scale is the fifth mode of the harmonic minor scale, the fifth being the dominant.[1] Also called the altered Phrygian scale, dominant flat 2 flat 6 (in jazz), the Freygish scale (also spelled Fraigish[2]), or simply the fifth mode of the harmonic minor scale. It resembles the scale of the Phrygian mode but has a major third. In the Berklee method, it is known as the Mixolydian ♭9 ♭13 chord scale, a Mixolydian scale with a lowered 9th (2nd) and lowered 13th (6th), used in secondary dominant chord scales for V7/III and V7/VI.
Traditional use
This scale occurs in Indian, Middle Eastern, Eastern European, Central Asian, and Flamenco music. It is common in Arabic and Egyptian music, in which it is called Hijaz-Nahawand or Bayati maqam,[3] and used in Hebrew prayers and Klezmer music, where it is known as Ahava Rabbah, Freygish or just the "Jewish scale", and is called Dastgāh-e Homāyoun in Iran. It is the most common scale in North Indian classical raga Hijaz Bhairav (Basant Mukhari) and South Indian raga Vakulabharanam.[4]
It is sometimes called the Spanish Phrygian scale, Spanish Gypsy scale (see: gypsy scale) or Phrygian major scale (see: phrygian mode and major scale) and is common in Flamenco music.[5] The flatted second and the augmented step between the second and third degrees of the scale create its distinctive sound. Examples include some versions of "Hava Nagila"[1] and "Misirlou", while other versions of those melodies use the closely related "double harmonic scale".[2] The main chords derived from this scale are I, II, iv, and vii.[2]
Composition
The sequence of steps forming the Phrygian dominant scale is:
- half – augmented second – half – whole – half – whole – whole
When related to the scale degrees of the major scale, it reads:
- 1 – ♭2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – ♭6 – ♭7 – 1
Written in semitones, the sequence is:
- 1312122
Beginning on C, the scale is:
- C – D♭ – E – F – G – A♭ – B♭ – C
When the Freygish scale is used in Klezmer music, the sixth degree may be left unflatted if it is melodically approached and left from above,[6] or the seventh degree may be raised as well.
See also
Notes
- 1 2 Dave Hunter (2005). Play Acoustic, San Francisco: Backbeat, p. 226. ISBN 978-0-87930-853-7.
- 1 2 3 Dick Weissman, Dan Fox (2009). A Guide to Non-Jazz Improvisation, guitar edition, Pacific, MO: Mel Bay, p. 130. ISBN 978-0-7866-0751-8.
- ↑ Peter Manuel (2006). Michael Tenzer, ed. Analytical Studies in World Music. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 96.
- ↑ Magazine, Sruti (2 September 2013). "Sruti Magazine: RAGA BASANT MUKHARI". srutimag.blogspot.com. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
- ↑ Scott Jarrett, Holly Day (2008). Music Composition for Dummies. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. p. 61. ISBN 0-470-22421-5.
- ↑ Ilana Cravitz (January 2004) Klezmer – Modes and Scales", ManchesterKlezmer.org at archive.org (Accessed 23 November 2014).
Further reading
- Hewitt, Michael. Musical Scales of the World. The Note Tree. 2013. ISBN 978-0957547001.