Chord & FretPhrygian dominant (E)
The most famous mode of the family: it's the 5th mode of harmonic minor, meaning its notes starting from the fifth degree. It pairs a major 3rd with a lowered 2nd — in practice, a dominant sound with a tight half step sitting right above the home note — leaving between them a hot, intense step-and-a-half leap that many ears recognize as the 'Spanish sound'. You'll hear it in flamenco, in Middle Eastern repertoires and in the harmonic-minor inflections of Brazil's Northeast; and it's the classic color for a dominant chord with b9 and b13 resolving to a minor key.
Example: E – F – G# – A – B – C – DFormula: 1 – b2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – b6 – b7In the formula, the numbers are degrees — positions counted in the reference major scale; "b" lowers a half step and "#" raises one.
Family: Harmonic minor and its modes.
The major seventh creates a strong leading tone and enables the V7 chord in a minor key. In popular practice the most relevant modes of the family are harmonic minor itself and phrygian dominant.
Chords in the harmonic field
These are the seven chords born from this scale — one built on each of its notes. Put another way: the set of chords that sounds naturally "inside" the scale. See the harmonic field of every key →
E7Fmaj7G#°7Am(maj7)Bm7b5Cmaj7#5Dm7The same scale on all four instruments
In the diagrams, each dot carries its scale degree — 1 is the tonic, highlighted.
One box per instrument is just the doorway into Phrygian dominant. In Chord & Fret, you hear the scale in each of the four instruments' own voices; switch the dot labels between degrees, note names and fingers; and turn on the built-in metronome at the same BPM. Start free. Unlock everything with Pro. 100% offline. See it in Chord & Fret →