STRINGSCALES

D♭ half-whole diminished Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: Fb, F, G, Ab, Bb, Cb, Db, Ebb, Fb at frets 0, 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12

A string: Bb, Cb, Db, Ebb, Fb, F, G, Ab at frets 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11

D string: Ebb, Fb, F, G, Ab, Bb, Cb, Db, Ebb at frets 0, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12

G string: G, Ab, Bb, Cb, Db, Ebb, Fb, F, G at frets 0, 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12

B string: Cb, Db, Ebb, Fb, F, G, Ab, Bb, Cb at frets 0, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12

High E string: Fb, F, G, Ab, Bb, Cb, Db, Ebb, Fb at frets 0, 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12

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Db half-whole diminished

The half-whole diminished scale alternates half and whole steps through eight notes, and is jazz's standard sound over a 13b9 dominant chord: it contains the b9, #9, #11, natural 13 and both chord 3rd and 7th. Because it repeats every minor 3rd, one fingering transposes in minor-3rd jumps, and the same notes serve four different dominant chords.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

D♭

I

E𝄫

bII

F♭

bIII

F

III

G

#IV

A♭

V

B♭

VI

C♭

bVII

Same notes, different mode

Db half-whole diminished 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.

D diminishedF diminishedAb diminishedCb diminished

half whole diminished in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Play Db half-whole diminished over a Db13b9 dominant chord; it contains the b9 (D), #9 (E), natural 13 (Bb) and both guide tones.
  • Its minor-3rd symmetry means one lick serves four dominant chords: transpose in three-fret jumps.
  • Build lines from the two diminished 7th arpeggios interlocked inside the scale, then resolve to the I chord a 4th up from Db.
  • Try the classic pattern: half step up, minor 3rd down, repeated through the scale for an instant jazz-fusion sequence.

How to play D♭ half-whole diminished on guitar

Capo fret 1 and every C half-whole fingering lands in this key, so nothing new has to be learned. Roots read 9 on both E strings, 4 on the A string, 11 on the D string. Open strings do carry scale tones, but as Fb, Ebb, G and Cb at a minor third, minor second, augmented fourth and minor seventh, which means no drone holds. First box ends at fret 13.

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