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D♭ Melodic minorScale

Open D♭ Melodic minor in the scale libraryDownload the D♭ Melodic minor chart (PDF)

Formula

W H W W W W H 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7
The family

D♭ Melodic minor on the chromatic circle

D♭ Melodic minor is the 1st mode of the Melodic minor family. Pick another note on the circle to open the scale that starts there.

W H W W W W H 1 D♭I Melodic minor 2 E♭II Dorian ♭2 ♭3 F♭III Lydian augmented 4 G♭IV Lydian dominant 5 A♭V Mixolydian ♭6 6 B♭VI Locrian ♮2 7 CVII Altered D♭ Melodic minor
The whole neck

D♭ Melodic minor across the fretboard

Every note of the scale up to the 16th fret, named by its degree. The root is a ring. Step through the five CAGED positions one at a time in the scale library.

3 5 7 9 12 15 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4
Harmony

Chords in D♭ Melodic minor

Stack every other note of the scale from each degree and you get its chords. Open any of them in the chord library.

DegreeChordNotes
iD♭m(maj7)D♭ F♭ A♭ C
iiE♭m7E♭ G♭ B♭ D♭
♭III+F♭maj7♯5F♭ A♭ C E♭
IVG♭7G♭ B♭ D♭ F♭
VA♭7A♭ C E♭ G♭
vi°B♭m7♭5B♭ D♭ F♭ A♭
vii°Cm7♭5C E♭ G♭ B♭
Context

Where D♭ Melodic minor fits

Jazz minor: over minor-major 7 and minor 6 chords, the tonic of a minor key in jazz. Its modes give jazz most of its altered sounds.

D♭ Melodic minor is mode 1 of the melodic minor family. The same notes played from each of its other degrees give the family's other modes:

Move one note by a half step and you get a different scale:

Melodic minor scale in every key

D♭ Melodic minor scale questions

What notes are in the D♭ Melodic minor scale?

D♭ E♭ F♭ G♭ A♭ B♭ C. As degrees from the root: 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7.

What is the D♭ Melodic minor scale formula?

1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7, or in steps between the notes, W H W W W W H (W is a whole step of two frets, H a half step of one fret, 1½ three frets).

How do you play the D♭ Melodic minor scale on guitar?

This page draws every note of D♭ Melodic minor up to the 16th fret, each named by its degree with the root as a ring. To learn it a few frets at a time, open it in the scale library and step through its five CAGED positions, from the C shape to the A shape to the G shape to the E shape to the D shape.

What chords are in the D♭ Melodic minor scale?

D♭m(maj7) (i), E♭m7 (ii), F♭maj7♯5 (♭III+), G♭7 (IV), A♭7 (V), B♭m7♭5 (vi°), Cm7♭5 (vii°).

When is the D♭ Melodic minor scale used?

Jazz minor: over minor-major 7 and minor 6 chords, the tonic of a minor key in jazz. Its modes give jazz most of its altered sounds.