Familiarize yourself with the four types of bebop scales most frequently used. These bebop scales are the bebop dominant, bebop Dorian, bebop major and bebop melodic minor. These scales are all based on modes of the major and minor scales.
Play a bebop Dorian scale contains an extra note between the minor third and the fourth notes of the Dorian mode, which makes it ideal to use over minor seventh chords. In C, the minor third is E flat. An added E gives this bebop scale its characteristic sound.
Play bebop major scales over sixth chords and major seventh chords. The bebop major comes from the Ionian mode and places a note between the fifth and six notes of the scale. This passing tone is ideal for improvising over sixth and major seventh chords.
Improvise over minor sixth chords with the bebop melodic minor. The addition of the extra note is between the fifth and sixth notes in this scale.
Play bebop dominant scales over dominant seventh chords or over a progression that moves from the second chord in a progression to the fifth. This scale contains an extra note between the seventh note and the root of the scale.
Improvise your solos with any of these bebop scales over the chords suggested. Make full use of the added tones to create bebop-flavored solos. These added tones and their relation to the suggested chords will give your guitar, piano or bass lines a bebop sound.