Harmonized Scales Used In Western Swing

[David Neslony]

What Harmonized Scales Are Used In Western Swing?

[J Fletcher]

If the song is in C major , then a good place to start would be the C major scale , harmonized in 3rds . That's about as basic as it gets .

[Phillip Hermans]

I'd recommend these Western Swing Rules videos with Eddie Rivers.

He doesn't approach it as scales, but rather as positions in the A6 (C6) tuning, and a lap steel at that.

Either way, he is doing typical western swing harmony (major scale in 3rds or 6ths with lots of chromatic passing tones)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rARCcW3I0K4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAbpeZ-y1eQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdxxtWmUO88

[Fred Treece]

+1 on those Eddie Rivers videos. They’re great.

I would say the mixolydian mode is the most prevalent scale in Western swing, and in all country types of music for that matter. It has the dom7/13 blues element that creates that tension between chord changes, which so often are based on the 12- and 16-bar progressions associated with blues music.

Most of the notes for harmonizing the mixolydian mode are in that 2-fret space (per chord) outlined in the Eddie Rivers video. Learn those 2-fret positions for each of the 1-4-5 chords in the key of your song and you’ll have all the notes and harmonies you need.

[David Neslony]

Thanks!