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C Phrygian Mode – Guitar

A minor scale with a flat 2nd: the dark, Spanish and metal sound. Here it is in C: the notes, the whole neck, all five boxes with TAB, and a backing track to practise over.

Notes in the C phrygian mode

Formula: 1 – b2 – b3 – 4 – 5 – b6 – b7. Use it to solo over songs in C minor, and over C blues and rock progressions.

C phrygian mode on the whole neck

EADGBe123456789101112131415FGAbBbDbEbFGBbDbEbFGAbBbEbFGAbBbDbEbFGAbBbDbEbFGAbBbDbEbFGAbBbDbFGAbBbDbEbFG
C Phrygian Mode on the whole neck, frets 0-15. Gold = the root (C).
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The 5 boxes (positions) with TAB

Each box is one hand position. Learn Box 1 first: play it up with the TAB, then back down, then move to the next box – together they cover the whole neck.

Box 1 · frets 7–12

EADGBe789101112DbEbFGAbBbDbEbFGGAbBbDbEb
C Phrygian Mode, box 1
e|----------------------------------------------8--9--11-|
B|-------------------------------------8--9--11----------|
G|----------------------------8--10-12-------------------|
D|-------------------8--10-11----------------------------|
A|----------8--10-11-------------------------------------|
E|-8--9--11----------------------------------------------|

Box 2 · frets 9–14

EADGBe91011121314DbEbFGAbBbDbEbFGAbAbBbDbDbEbF
C Phrygian Mode, box 2
e|-------------------------------------------------9--11-13-|
B|-------------------------------------9--11-13-14----------|
G|----------------------------10-12-13----------------------|
D|-------------------10-11-13-------------------------------|
A|----------10-11-13----------------------------------------|
E|-9--11-13-------------------------------------------------|

Box 3 · frets 11–17

EADGBe11121314151617EbFGAbAbBbDbDbEbFGGAbBbBbDbEbEbFGAb
C Phrygian Mode, box 3
e|-------------------------------------------------------------11-13-15-16-|
B|-------------------------------------------------11-13-14-16-------------|
G|-------------------------------------12-13-15-17-------------------------|
D|-------------------------11-13-15-17-------------------------------------|
A|-------------11-13-15-16-------------------------------------------------|
E|-11-13-15-16-------------------------------------------------------------|

Box 4 · frets 2–7

EADGBe234567GAbBbDbEbFGAbBbDbDbEbFGAbBb
C Phrygian Mode, box 4
e|-------------------------------3-4-6-|
B|-------------------------2-4-6-------|
G|-------------------3-5-6-------------|
D|-------------3-5-6-------------------|
A|-------3-4-6-------------------------|
E|-3-4-6-------------------------------|

Box 5 · frets 4–9

EADGBe456789AbBbDbDbEbFGAbBbDbEbEbFGAbAbBbDb
C Phrygian Mode, box 5
e|-----------------------------------4-6-8-9-|
B|---------------------------4-6-8-9---------|
G|---------------------5-6-8-----------------|
D|---------------5-6-8-----------------------|
A|---------4-6-8-----------------------------|
E|-4-6-8-9-----------------------------------|

3 C minor licks to play with it

Box 1 licks from the JamEase lick library, written for C minor (h = hammer-on, p = pull-off, / = slide, b = bend, ~ = vibrato).

Top-string answer

Picking · Rock

Down from the top, a step back, and home on the high root.

e|-11-8-----8--|
B|-------11----|
G|-------------|
D|-------------|
A|-------------|
E|-------------|

Pull-off ladder

Pull-off · Rock

Two notes a string, pulling off, all the way down to the home note.

e|-11p-8-----------------------|
B|---------11p-8---------------|
G|-----------------10p-8-------|
D|-------------------------10--|
A|-----------------------------|
E|-----------------------------|

Vibrato home

Vibrato · Soulful

Two notes, then hold the root and shake it. Vibrato is your voice.

e|-------------|
B|-------------|
G|-8---10------|
D|---------10~-|
A|-------------|
E|-------------|

C minor backing track

Play the boxes over this, starting and ending phrases on the gold root notes.

Sexy Slow Blues Backing Track in C Minor | Bonamassa Style Jam Track (44.666 BPM) – Now YOU Shred Backing Tracks

Songs in C minor

These songs are in C minor, so this is a scale that fits for soloing over them:

All songs in C minor →

Other scales in C

Phrygian Mode in other keys

Put it to use: solo with it, step by step, starting with three notes.

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FAQ

What notes are in the C phrygian mode?

C, Db, Eb, F, G, Ab, Bb. The formula is 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7.

Where do I start playing the C phrygian mode on guitar?

Start with Box 1, frets 7–12. The root note C is on the low E string at fret 8.