A Lydian Scale

Major with a raised 4th — the 'floating,' cinematic modal color.

Labels

Root KeyC C#D D#E F F#G G#A A#B

Full neck(1 / 6)

Tap any note on the fretboard to hear it. Root notes are highlighted in brand blue and marked R in interval mode.

Root

A

Formula

1 2 3 #4 5 6 7

Notes

A B C# D# E F# G#

Difficulty

Intermediate

Common Genres

FusionFilm ScoreProg

Famous Guitarists Who Use It

Steve Vai · Joe Satriani · John Petrucci

Signature Licks & Ideas

Vai's 'Flex-Able' vocabulary lives on the #4 over a static major chord.

How to Practice

Play the scale one octave, ascending and descending, on a single string first.
Then play it across the strings in position — index finger anchored on the root fret.
Loop it slowly with a metronome (start at 60 bpm) before pushing tempo.
Improvise over a backing track in the same key — target the root note on beat 1.

Try This Scale in Another Key

C Lydian C# Lydian D Lydian D# Lydian E Lydian F Lydian F# Lydian G Lydian G# Lydian A Lydian A# Lydian B Lydian

Related Scales in A

A Major A Natural Minor A Pentatonic Major A Pentatonic Minor A Blues A Harmonic Minor A Melodic Minor A Dorian

Practice Essentials

Editor-picked gear that makes practice easier. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

Boss DB-30 Dr. Beat

Compact, loud enough for practice — polyrhythm support.

Korg TM-60 Tuner-Metronome

Combo device that hangs off a music stand.

Soundbrenner Pulse

Wearable vibrating metronome — feel the click.

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