STRINGSCALES

F altered dominant double b3 Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: F, Gb, Abb, Bbb, Cb, Db, Eb at frets 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11

A string: Bbb, Cb, Db, Eb, F, Gb, Abb, Bbb at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12

D string: Eb, F, Gb, Abb, Bbb, Cb, Db at frets 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11

G string: Abb, Bbb, Cb, Db, Eb, F, Gb, Abb at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12

B string: Cb, Db, Eb, F, Gb, Abb, Bbb, Cb at frets 0, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12

High E string: F, Gb, Abb, Bbb, Cb, Db, Eb at frets 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11

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F 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:

F

I

A𝄫7no5/F
G♭

bii

G♭m
A𝄫

bbIII+

A𝄫aug
B𝄫

bIV+

B𝄫aug
C♭

bV

C♭maj
D♭

bVI

D♭majb5
E♭

bvii°

E♭dim

Same notes, different mode

F 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.

Gb neapolitan majorG leading whole toneA lydian augmented dominantCb lydian dominant b6Db major locrianEb 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 F altered dominant double b3 (Ab) for one bar of maximum dominant tension, then resolve.
  • The double-flat 3rd (G) 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 (B); 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 F.

How to play F altered dominant double b3 on guitar

Fret 1 holds the lowest root, one fret from the nut, so the E-shape barre needs no reach at all. Inside the collection sit open A, open G plus open B, the last giving the diminished fifth. Capo 1 recasts everything as E fingering, which lets open-position ideas carry straight over. D string adds a root three frets up. Shape one stops at fret 5.

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