SCALE REFERENCE

B Diminished (Half–Whole)

B – C – D – E♭ – F – G♭ – A♭ – A1 b2 b3 3 #4 5 6 b7

Half then whole steps — the scale over a 7b9 chord, giving the b9, #9, #11 and 13. The other half of the octatonic pair.

Notes & degrees
B1Cb2Db3E♭3F#4G♭5A♭6Ab7
NotesB, C, D, Eb, F, Gb, Ab, A
StepsH – W – H – W – H – W – H – W (W = whole, H = half)
Also calledDominant Diminished
Piano
BCDFAE♭G♭A♭
Guitar & ukulele — every position (frets 0–12)
357912eFG♭A♭ABCDE♭BBCDE♭FG♭A♭ABGA♭ABCDE♭FG♭DDE♭FG♭A♭ABCDAABCDE♭FG♭A♭AEFG♭A♭ABCDE♭

Root notes are red. The full map of the scale on the guitar neck; the common box patterns are groups of these notes.

357912AABCDE♭FG♭A♭AEFG♭A♭ABCDE♭CCDE♭FG♭A♭ABCGA♭ABCDE♭FG♭

The same scale on a ukulele in standard G–C–E–A tuning.

Other scales on B

Core scales & modes

B MajorB Natural MinorB Harmonic MinorB Melodic MinorB DorianB PhrygianB LydianB MixolydianB Locrian

Pentatonic & blues

B Major PentatonicB Minor PentatonicB BluesB Major Blues

Jazz & altered

B Harmonic MajorB Phrygian DominantB Lydian DominantB AlteredB Bebop Dominant

Symmetric

B Whole ToneB Diminished (Whole–Half)B Augmented Scale

World & exotic

B Hungarian MinorB Double Harmonic MajorB Neapolitan Minor
Diminished (Half–Whole) on another root
CC♯D♭DE♭D♯EFF♯G♭GA♭G♯AB♭A♯B
Keep exploring

See the diatonic chords with audio in the Scale & Chord Finder, find where a key sits among the others on the Circle of Fifths, or start the free Cloud Atelier music guides.