Eb Lydian (D# Lydian) on Guitar
Lydian is the major scale with the 4th raised a semitone — major, but floating instead of grounded. The notes of Eb Lydian are Eb, F, G, A, Bb, C, D. Its characteristic note is A — the sharp 4th — the one note that gives this major-type scale its colour.
It is the dreamy, weightless sound of film scores, "The Simpsons" theme, and Joe Satriani ballads ("Flying in a Blue Dream" is a Lydian tutorial with a record deal). The sharp 4th refuses to resolve downward the way a normal 4th does, so the whole scale hovers.
Eb Lydian across the whole neck
Over the drone, hold the sharp 4th and let it ring — in any other major context it would be a wrong note; here it is the point.
Formula and intervals
R - 2 - 3 - b5 - 5 - 6 - 7 — 7 notes. The natural 3rd makes it a major-family scale.
Chords in Eb Lydian
These are the diatonic chords — the harmony built from only the notes above. Vamping between any of them keeps you inside the mode.
| Degree | Chord | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| I | Eb | Major |
| II | F | Major |
| iii | Gm | Minor |
| iv° | Adim | Diminished |
| V | Bb | Major |
| vi | Cm | Minor |
| vii | Dm | Minor |
Same notes, different home
Eb Lydian contains exactly the same notes as Bb Major. Nothing about the notes changes — what changes is which one feels like home, and that changes everything about the sound.
Other modes on Eb
Keep the same root and swap the scale — the fastest way to hear what each mode actually does.
Modal Runs