E♭ Mixolydian mode (D♯ Mixolydian)
E♭ Mixolydian mode is E♭ – F – G – A♭ – B♭ – C – D♭, with E♭, A♭, B♭ and D♭. Formula 1 2 3 4 5 6 ♭7. Press play and follow the keys.
The notes, one step at a time
Counted in steps it goes W W H W W H W (W = whole step, H = half step). The half steps fall between G–A♭ and C–D♭.
| Degree | Note | Interval from E♭ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | E♭ | root | |
| 2 | F | major second | |
| 3 | G | major third | |
| 4 | A♭ | perfect fourth | |
| 5 | B♭ | perfect fifth | |
| 6 | C | major sixth | |
| ♭7 | D♭ | minor seventh |
What E♭ Mixolydian sounds like
Take E♭ major and flatten the 7th to D♭: that's E♭ Mixolydian. Lots of classic rock riffs and Celtic tunes live here.
The Mixolydian move is D♭ to E♭, the major chord a whole step below home, the ♭VII that rock uses constantly.
Compared with E♭ major scale, E♭ Mixolydian mode has D♭ where the other has D; the other six notes are shared. Hear E♭ major scale and compare.
E♭ Mixolydian mode uses the same seven notes as A♭ major, starting from E♭ instead of A♭. Same notes, different home note: what makes it Mixolydian is playing it over a E♭ bass or chord.
Where your hands go
E♭, A♭, B♭ and D♭ are on black keys; the rest are white.
The guitar box starts with the root at the 11th fret of the low E string and spans frets 9–15: 16 notes, low string to high.
Chords built on each note
Stack every other note of the scale on each degree and you get 7 chords. These are the chords that fit E♭ Mixolydian mode; the ones that differ from the A♭ major set are what give the mode its color. Tap to hear each one.
E♭ Mixolydian mode shares all its notes with C Phrygian (starting on the 6th note, C), D♭ Lydian (starting on the 7th note, D♭), F natural minor (starting on the 2nd note, F), G Locrian (starting on the 3rd note, G), A♭ major (starting on the 4th note, A♭) and B♭ Dorian (starting on the 5th note, B♭). Which one you hear depends on which note the music treats as home.
Moving it around the guitar
Find E♭ first: fret 11 of the 6th string, fret 6 of the 5th. Work up the neck in five positions (low E string frets 1, 4, 6, 8 and 11) and you'll have it everywhere. Play a major scale, then drop the 7th a half step; that is Mixolydian, the sound of a dominant chord.
On the piano, E♭ Mixolydian mode uses 4 black keys (E♭, A♭, B♭ and D♭) and 3 white.
Try it in thirds to stop it sounding like an exercise: E♭–G, F–A♭, G–B♭, A♭–C, B♭–D♭, C–E♭, D♭–F, then back down.
Drills for E♭ Mixolydian
Once E♭ Mixolydian is comfortable up and down, break the order. Each pattern below uses only its 7 notes.
- Three-note runs: E♭ F G · F G A♭ · G A♭ B♭ · A♭ B♭ C · B♭ C D♭ · C D♭ E♭.
- Target D♭: E♭ D♭ E♭ D♭ E♭: the ♭7 takes the pull out of major and makes it bluesy.
Scales to compare with E♭ Mixolydian
Mixolydian mode in every key
E♭ Mixolydian mode: questions
What are the notes of the E♭ Mixolydian mode?
7 notes: E♭, F, G, A♭, B♭, C and D♭.
How many sharps or flats are in the E♭ Mixolydian mode?
Four: E♭, A♭, B♭ and D♭.
What chords are in the E♭ Mixolydian mode?
Stacking thirds on each note gives E♭ (I), Fm (ii), Gdim (iii°), A♭ (IV), B♭m (v), Cm (vi) and D♭ (VII).
What's the difference between E♭ Mixolydian mode and E♭ major scale?
D♭ in E♭ Mixolydian; D in the other. Everything else is the same.
Which major scale has the same notes as E♭ Mixolydian mode?
A♭ major. E♭ Mixolydian is A♭ major played from its 5th note, E♭.
Generated from the step pattern 2-2-1-2-2-1-2 and checked by the site's tests. Updated September 2026.