It is also used by guitarists wishing to introduce exotic sounds into their playing. The Phrygian dominant scale is the fifth mode of a harmonic minor scale. Click to see more ways of playing this scale. Click diagram to see more ways of playing this scale. Scale spelling is as follows: 1, b2, b3, 3, #4, 5, 6, b7. It is octatonic (made up of eight notes), and is formed by alternate half and whole tone steps. The Half-Whole step diminished scale is another strange, ambiguous-sounding scale. Scale 2: Diminished Scale (Half-Whole step) For more information and diagrams for other positions see: Double Harmonic Scale.

The scale has two augmented second intervals, giving it its enigmatic quality. With the scale spelling 1, b2, 3, 4, 5, b6, 7 it is very similar to the Phrygian dominant scale, but with a raised seventh note. This strange and rather beautiful scale possibly has the biggest claim to be the ‘Arabic Scale’. It contains these and many other scales in multiple fretboard positions, allowing you to play them all over the neck.Īrabic Scale 1: The Double Harmonic Scale Double Harmonic Scale Guitar Diagram. If you want to learn these scales in more than one position, take a look at our downloadable Guitar Scales book. On this page, each Arabic scale type is presented in notation, guitar TAB and guitar pattern diagrams, allowing you to incorporate them in your own compositions and improvisations. The scales we’ve included are: the double harmonic scale, Phrygian dominant scale, Phrygian scale, and the diminished scale (half-whole step).

Each of the scales below has at some time been referred to as an ‘Arabic scale’.Īlthough the scales on this page may have been used in traditional Arabic music (or are at least reminiscent of scales that were), it’s unlikely that the original musicians were thinking in terms of Western theory or notation the scales here are likely more ‘translations’ of the actual scales that were used. The name ‘Arabic Scale’ has been given to several different scales, each of which has an ‘Middle Eastern’ sound when played.

Arabic scale converter software