Dorian Bebop

Dorian mode + chromatic between ♭7 and root, every key

The bebop-scale trio is now complete. Over the ii chord (a Dorian-mode m7), add a chromatic between ♭7 and the root: for D Dorian, that's C♯ between C and D. The result is eight notes per octave, with the chord tones of the ii⁷ (1, ♭3, 5, ♭7) landing on every downbeat.

The three bebop scales cover the entire ii–V–I melodically: Dorian bebop on the ii, dominant bebop on the V, major bebop on the I. Together they give you a chord-tone-on-the-downbeat vocabulary for every bar of a standard.

Now 2 octaves, both hands — the same pattern extended up and back with fingering marked above every note in each hand.

Scale

1 – 2 – ♭3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – ♭7 – 7 (over ii⁷)

Same chromatic

Dorian and dominant bebop both add natural-7 between ♭7 and root

Dm7 (ii of C)

Gm7 (ii of F)

Cm7 (ii of B♭)

Fm7 (ii of E♭)

B♭m7 (ii of A♭)

E♭m7 (ii of D♭)

A♭m7 (ii of G♭)

C♯m7 (ii of B)

F♯m7 (ii of E)

Bm7 (ii of A)

Em7 (ii of D)

Am7 (ii of G)

The Daily Drill

Three scales, one ii-V-I

4 minPick one key. Play Dorian bebop on the ii, then dominant bebop on the V, then major bebop on the I. The chord-tone alignment carries through all three.
10 minCycle three keys at a time. Each scale is the parent major scale's mode + chromatic between ♭7 and root (Dorian, Mixolydian) or 5 and 6 (Ionian). One parent scale, three different chromatics.
4 minPlay 1 bar of each scale in sequence over ii-V-I: ii bebop ascending → V bebop ascending → I bebop ascending. Three bars, twenty-four eighth notes, chord tones on every downbeat.
3 minImprovise: pick a tune and play the bebop scale of each chord as it goes by. Aim for chord tones on the downbeats and you're already speaking the bebop language.

Why the same chromatic for ii and V

The ii and V of a major key share the same parent scale (the major scale of the I). Dorian on ii and Mixolydian on V are modes of that one scale. The chromatic addition lands at the same scale-degree position (between ♭7 and root) in both cases. Major bebop's chromatic is in a different place (between 5 and 6) because there the downbeats need to land the I6 chord tones — 1, 3, 5, 6. Same parent scale, three different chromatic insertions to align the chord tones with downbeats.

Three scales, one parent. The bebop vocabulary in nine sentences.

80 bpm

Sound