D Half-Whole Diminished Scale
The D half-whole diminished scale — D Eb F F# G# A B C — with its intervals, the chords it fits and every position on the guitar neck.
Tap any note on the neck.
Swipe the neck sideways to see the higher frets.
D half-whole diminished scale notes and intervals
D half-whole diminished has 8 notes. Each is named by its distance from the root, which is the same in every key — learn the numbers once and every half-whole diminished scale reads the same.
Step pattern from the root: H – W – H – W – H – W – H – W (W is a whole step, two frets; H is a half step, one fret).
Scales it shares notes with:
- Eb whole-half diminished — whole-half diminished — the same eight notes from the b2
- F half-whole diminished — half-whole diminished from the b3 — the same eight notes again, a minor third up
D half-whole diminished scale positions on guitar — all 8
Three notes on every string gives D half-whole diminished eight positions, one starting on each note of the scale, that together cover frets 1 to 16. The scale repeats itself every minor third, so the eight are only two shapes: positions 1, 3, 5 and 7 are one, 2, 4, 6 and 8 the other, and moving either one three frets up or down gives the same notes again. Learn the two and slide them.
Position 1 — frets 8–13
Starts on the 1 (D) on the 6th string. Practice this position →
Position 2 — frets 10–14
Starts on the b2 (Eb) on the 6th string. Practice this position →
Position 3 — frets 11–16
Starts on the b3 (F) on the 6th string. Practice this position →
Position 4 — frets 1–5
Starts on the 3 (F#) on the 6th string. Practice this position →
Position 5 — frets 2–7
Starts on the #4 (G#) on the 6th string. Practice this position →
Position 6 — frets 4–8
Starts on the 5 (A) on the 6th string. Practice this position →
Position 7 — frets 5–10
Starts on the 6 (B) on the 6th string. Practice this position →
Position 8 — frets 7–11
Starts on the b7 (C) on the 6th string. Practice this position →
Chords to play D half-whole diminished over
D half-whole diminished is the scale for D7 with an altered 9th. It holds the whole D7 chord (D F# A C) and adds the b9, #9, #11 and 13 (Eb F G# B), the tensions that make a dominant chord pull hard to the next one. Because the scale repeats every minor third, the same eight notes fit F7, G#7 and B7 just as well.
Play the D7 arpeggio inside the scale → The Practice Loop keeps only the chord’s notes in each position, so you hear what the rest of the scale is decorating.
How to practice the D half-whole diminished scale
- Start with position 4 at frets 1–5, slowly, until every note lands on the click. The loop keeps the shape and the tempo for you.
- Slide the shape: position 6 is the same fingering 3 frets higher, and the same notes. Play one, then the other, and the move is the scale.
- Climb 4 notes at a time, two notes up each time: each group starts a minor third above the last, the same step the scale repeats by.
- Switch the same position to the D7 arpeggio, the chord’s notes alone, then back to the scale.
- See every D half-whole diminished note across the whole neck on the Fretboard, and find each box again an octave up.
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