Writing Melodies in A Phrygian Mode: Home Notes and Pull
A Phrygian is A minor with a single note pulled down: B becomes Bb. That one change, a note sitting only a half step above the home note, gives the scale its dark, tense and slightly exotic color. You hear it in flamenco and in heavy metal, and once you know how to use it, you can make a melody sound Phrygian in about four notes.
Seven notes, seven letters
The notes of A Phrygian are A, Bb, C, D, E, F, G. Say them out loud and you'll notice every letter from A to G appears exactly once. That's the rule behind the spelling: a seven-note scale uses each letter name one time, in order.
That's why the second note is Bb and not A#. On a piano they're the same black key, but calling it A# would give us two A's and no B at all, which makes the scale harder to read and think about. So: A, then a B of some kind (Bb), then C, D, E, F, G. Tidy and logical.
The scale is built from a step pattern. A half step is the smallest move in Western music, one piano key to the very next one, black or white. A whole step is two half steps. Phrygian runs H - W - W - W - H - W - W. Starting on A:
- A up a half step to Bb
- Bb up a whole step to C
- C up a whole step to D
- D up a whole step to E
- E up a half step to F
- F up a whole step to G
- G up a whole step back to A
As a formula, measured against a major scale, that's 1, b2, b3, 4, 5, b6, b7. The "b" numbers are notes lowered by a half step. The b2, Bb, is the one that defines everything.
Where a melody wants to rest, and where it leans
Think of a melody as a series of tensions and releases. Some notes feel like sitting down; others feel like leaning forward.
A is home. End a phrase on A and it feels finished. E, the 5th, is the next most stable note, a good place for a phrase to pause without closing. C, the minor 3rd, colors things sad and settled.
Bb is the leaning note. Because it's only a half step above A, it presses down on the root and wants to fall into it. Sing Bb to A slowly and you'll hear the whole personality of the scale in two notes. Most scales resolve upward into the root from a half step below; Phrygian resolves downward from above. That's the sound a melody writer should chase.
F does the same job one level up, sitting a half step above E and sliding down into it. Meanwhile G is a whole step below A, so it approaches home softly rather than urgently. Lean on Bb to A and F to E, and your tune will sound Phrygian without trying.
One flat, and some close relatives
A Phrygian has a key signature of one flat, Bb, because it shares its notes with F major (F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E). Same seven notes, but the music circles and resolves to A instead of F. A pianist can play every white key from A to A, swap B for Bb, and they've got it.
Two other neighbors are worth knowing. D minor uses this same one-flat collection, so the notes will feel familiar if you've played there. And A minor, the parallel minor, is identical except for that B. Switching between B and Bb in a melody is a lovely way to step in and out of the Phrygian mood.
Chords under the tune
Build a chord on each note of the scale, using only scale notes, and you get:
- i: Am (A-C-E) / Am7
- bII: Bb (Bb-D-F) / Bbmaj7
- bIII: C (C-E-G) / C7
- iv: Dm (D-F-A) / Dm7
- v°: Edim (E-G-Bb) / Em7b5
- bVI: F (F-A-C) / Fmaj7
- bvii: Gm (G-Bb-D) / Gm7
The star is Bb, the bII chord. It carries the b2 in its root, so moving Bb to Am harmonizes that downward pull perfectly. Try the progression Am - Bb - Am - Bb, then stretch it to Dm - C - Bb - Am, a descending line with a strong Spanish flavor. Gm is also handy, since it contains Bb and keeps the dark color alive.
Writing a short tune that couldn't be anything else
Here's a simple recipe for four bars over Am - Bb - Am - Bb:
- Bar 1: start on A, rise to C, then E. Establish home.
- Bar 2: over the Bb chord, land on Bb or D, and hold Bb.
- Bar 3: let Bb fall to A. That's your first release.
- Bar 4: climb to F, then let it slip down to E, ending on a pause rather than a full stop.
Repeat it, but finish the second time with Bb to A. Keep the melody mostly stepwise and you'll hear the scale's brooding quality without any decoration.
For guitarists
The open A string is your root, so you can drone it while playing the melody on higher strings, a classic flamenco and metal move. You'll also find A at the 5th and 17th frets of the low E string and the 12th fret of the A string. The 5th-fret position on the low E is a comfortable home for the whole scale, with Bb just one fret above the root on the A string.
Try this today: hum or play a low A as a drone, then improvise for one minute using only A, Bb and C, ending every phrase with Bb falling to A. Notice how quickly three notes start to sound like a place.
For the bigger picture, read The Phrygian Mode.