Lydian Augmented Mode on Guitar: Notes, Chords & Examples

Lydian Augmented is one of the most colorful major-type modes you can play on guitar. It sounds bright, floating, futuristic, and slightly unstable.

If regular Lydian sounds dreamy because of its raised 4th, Lydian Augmented takes that dreaminess further by also raising the 5th. That #5 gives the mode an almost sci-fi, cinematic, fusion-like quality.

It is not a “home base” mode in most rock or pop music. You will hear it more often in jazz fusion, progressive music, film-score-style harmony, and modern guitar improvisation.

Lydian Augmented is the 3rd mode of melodic minor:

A melodic minor: A B C D E F# G# C Lydian Augmented: C D E F# G# A B

The important sound is this:

Major 3rd: E
Raised 4th: F#
Raised 5th: G#
Major 7th: B

That combination creates a bright but strange major sound with no perfect 5th.

How does it sound?

Before anything else, let’s hear how it sounds. This can best be done by playing a chord from the mode, and playing the notes of the mode arpeggiated on top of it. This is the best and quickest way to determine the feel of a mode.

This can be quickly done using SLModes, a software dedicated to the music modes, and the following sound was generated by it:

Formula

The interval formula for Lydian Augmented is:

1 2 3 #4 #5 6 7

Compared to the major scale:

C major: C D E F G A B C Lydian Augmented: C D E F# G# A B

The two altered notes are:

#4: F# instead of F
#5: G# instead of G

That means C Lydian Augmented is like a C major scale with a raised 4th and raised 5th.

Notes in C

The notes of C Lydian Augmented are:

C D E F# G# A B

Scale degrees:

Degree	Note
1	C
2	D
3	E
#4	F#
#5	G#
6	A
7	B

For guitarists, the two notes to really hear are F# and G#.

The F# gives you the Lydian brightness. The G# gives you the augmented, unstable lift.

The Chord That Defines the Mode

The defining chord of C Lydian Augmented is:

Cmaj7#5

Notes:

C E G# B

This chord captures the essential sound because it includes:

C: the root
E: the major 3rd
G#: the raised 5th
B: the major 7th

That #5 is what separates this mode from normal C Lydian.

However, to make the mode even clearer, add the #11:

Cmaj7#5(#11)

Notes:

C E G# B F#

The #11 is the same note as the #4, which is F#.

So the most complete “this is Lydian Augmented” chord is:

Cmaj7#5(#11)

On guitar, you do not always need to play every note. A simple voicing with C, E, G#, and B is enough to imply the sound. Then you can bring out F# in the melody or solo.

Important: avoid leaning too hard on a normal G natural over C, because G is not in the C Lydian Augmented scale.

Chord Progression (Example)

Lydian Augmented is not usually used for traditional functional progressions. It works best when the harmony keeps returning to the tonic color chord: Cmaj7#5.

Roman numerals:

Imaj7#5 – II7 – Imaj7#5

Chords in C:

Cmaj7#5 – D7 – Cmaj7#5

This is one of the clearest ways to hear the mode.

The Cmaj7#5 gives you the dreamy augmented tonic sound. The D7 comes naturally from the scale:

D F# A C

That D7 chord also highlights the F#, the Lydian #4.

Mood: bright, open, modern, fusion-inspired.

Try looping this slowly and soloing with C Lydian Augmented.

Guitar Fretboard Shape

Here’s the mode mapped across the full fretboard, generated with my software SLModes.

The diagram shows every occurrence of the mode across the neck:

🟢 Green dots = the root note, your anchor points
🟠 Orange dots = the rest of the scale tones

Why Guitarists Love This Mode

C Lydian Augmented is not an everyday mode, but that is exactly why creative guitarists love it.

The mode sounds major, but not plain.

It has a bright emotional center because of the major 3rd and major 7th. But the #4 and #5 make it feel unstable, floating, and otherworldly.

It can sound:

Futuristic
Mysterious
Dreamlike
Elegant
Surreal
Fusion-heavy

If Ionian is “happy” and Lydian is “wide open,” Lydian Augmented is “glowing and weightless.”

Genres Where It Works Well

C Lydian Augmented is especially effective in:

Jazz fusion
Progressive rock
Progressive metal clean sections
Instrumental guitar music
Film-score-inspired writing
Ambient guitar
Modern jazz
Experimental songwriting

It can also work in metal if you use it for atmospheric breaks, extended chords, or lead lines over unusual harmony.

Tips for Practicing

To practice a mode effectively, you only need two things:

An instrument to play the mode (your guitar is ready to go!)
A backing track that provides a harmonic context

The fretboard diagram above already show you where the notes are. The remaining piece is choosing an appropriate backing track to improvise over.

Practice with a drone

The simplest option is a single C drone.

You can create one using:

A looper pedal
A synth drone
A sustained bass note in your DAW
An open C tuning
Or any other source of a continuous C note

Because the accompaniment consists of only a single note, you are responsible for highlighting the intervals that define the mode. The more intentionally you emphasize its characteristic tones, the more clearly the modal sound will emerge.

Create modal vamps with SLModes

While a drone is an excellent way to hear a mode in isolation, a modal vamp often provides a more musical and rewarding practice experience.

A well-designed backing track naturally emphasizes the mode’s characteristic intervals, allowing you to focus on phrasing, melody, and expression instead of constantly trying to establish the modal sound yourself. As a result, improvising in the character of the mode often feels more intuitive.

There are many ways to build modal backing tracks, but SLModes can generate them for you in just a few clicks. For example:

Arpeggiated backing tracks — a repeating pattern that outlines every note of the mode.
Chord vamps — progressions built from chords that best reinforce the mode’s unique character.

This video shows you an example: