STRINGSCALES

D altered dominant double b3 Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: Fb, Gb, Ab, Bb, C, D, Eb, Fb at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12

A string: Bb, C, D, Eb, Fb, Gb, Ab at frets 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11

D string: D, Eb, Fb, Gb, Ab, Bb, C, D at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12

G string: Ab, Bb, C, D, Eb, Fb, Gb at frets 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11

B string: C, D, Eb, Fb, Gb, Ab, Bb at frets 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11

High E string: Fb, Gb, Ab, Bb, C, D, Eb, Fb at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12

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D altered dominant double b3

The altered dominant double b3 scale, the seventh mode of the neapolitan major scale, is the altered scale pushed one notch further: the sharp 9 is flattened again to a double-flat 3rd. Every degree from 2 to 7 is lowered, some twice. It is about as much tension as seven notes can carry, for altered dominants at the outer edge of jazz harmony.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

D

I

F♭7no5/D
E♭

bii

E♭m
F♭

bbIII+

F♭aug
G♭

bIV+

G♭aug
A♭

bV

A♭maj
B♭

bVI

B♭majb5
C

bvii°

Cdim

Same notes, different mode

D altered dominant double b3 uses the same notes as the scales below. Start from a different note and you get a new mode built on the very same note set.

Eb neapolitan majorFb leading whole toneGb lydian augmented dominantAb lydian dominant b6Bb major locrianC half-diminished b4

altered dominant double b3 in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Every degree above the root is lowered, some twice: use D altered dominant double b3 (F) for one bar of maximum dominant tension, then resolve.
  • The double-flat 3rd (E) is enharmonically the 9th of the chord a half step down; voice-lead it there and the wildness turns logical.
  • Anchor on the tritone between the root and b5 (Ab); it is the only interval here the ear can hold onto.
  • As the seventh mode of neapolitan major, it shares its pitch set with the neapolitan major a half step above D.

How to play D altered dominant double b3 on guitar

Open D gives the root while the E pair adds the diminished third, which means a workable drone sits under open-position playing. Another root waits on the B string, three frets up, so short phrases near the nut need no barre. Barres: A-shape fret 5, E-shape fret 10. Shapes here match C half-diminished b4 exactly, so anything learned there transfers. Position one ends at fret 14.

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