STRINGSCALES

D locrian #2 Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: E, F, G, Ab, Bb, C, D, E at frets 0, 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12

A string: Bb, C, D, E, F, G, Ab at frets 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11

D string: D, E, F, G, Ab, Bb, C, D at frets 0, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12

G string: G, Ab, Bb, C, D, E, F, G at frets 0, 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12

B string: C, D, E, F, G, Ab, Bb at frets 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11

High E string: E, F, G, Ab, Bb, C, D, E at frets 0, 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12

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D locrian #2

The locrian #2 scale is the sixth mode of the melodic minor scale, locrian with its flat 2nd raised to a natural 2nd. That one change gives half-diminished chords a usable scale without the b9 rub against the root, which is why jazz players treat it as the polished choice over m7b5 in minor ii-V-i progressions.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

D

i°

Ddim
E

ii°

Edim
F

biii

Fm
G

iv

Gm
A♭

bV+

A♭aug
B♭

bVI

B♭maj
C

bVII

Cmaj

Characteristic note: E (natural 2), the natural second that makes this the friendlier half-diminished scale.

Same notes, different mode

D locrian #2 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.

E alteredF melodic minorG dorian b2Ab lydian augmentedBb lydian dominantC mixolydian b6

locrian #2 in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Over a m7b5 chord, D locrian #2 (F) is the polished choice: the natural 2nd (E) removes the b9 clash that plain locrian has against the root.
  • Think melodic minor up a minor 3rd from D; borrowed fingerings work as-is.
  • Start lines on the natural 2nd (E) to advertise the difference from locrian, then outline the half-diminished arpeggio.
  • In a minor ii-V-i, follow it with the altered scale of the V chord: two modes of neighboring melodic minors, one seamless line.

How to play D locrian #2 on guitar

Open D gives the root and open G the fourth, with both E strings on the major second, so a four-string drone bed sits under D locrian #2. Shapes transfer straight from F melodic minor, 3 frets up, which lets melodic minor vocabulary do the work here. Tonic chord comes out diminished, Ddim. Fretted roots wait at fret 5 on the A string and fret 10 on the E strings, and a functional dominant never shows up in the chord stack.

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