Secrets of the Diminished Scale - Learn Jazz Standards https://www.learnjazzstandards.com/blog/secrets-of-the-diminis...
Secrets of the Diminished Scale
By C
Caam
mddeenn H
Huugghheess - April 7, 2015
There are 12 major scales. It would seem to follow there are 12 of any other type of scale, one
for each chromatic note. However, this is not the case. Because of their symmetry, there are
only 3 diminished scales and only 2 whole tone scales! Of course, there is only one chromatic
scale. In this article, we will unlock some of the secrets of the mysterious diminished scale.
There is a movement in modern jazz theory to talk about scales in terms of “pitch collections,”
which is just what it sounds like; a collection of pitches. The term is sometimes used in lieu of
the word “scale” to help de-emphasize the sequential nature of a scale. Seeing the notes in
a pitch collection outside of their relationship to a sequential “scale” can theoretically be a
positive thing for an developing improviser seeking to play coherent melodies instead of just
“using this-or-that scale to improvise.”
The term “pitch collection” is especially useful when talking about diminished harmony. Their
symmetry makes diminished scales prime examples of “pitch collections” because we can easily
see the repetitive nature of these scales. Each of the 3 diminished pitch collection (scales) can
start (and end) on 8 different notes, corresponding to eight different chords (4 diminished
chords and 4 “7(b9)” or “13(b9)” chords).
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D i m i n i s h e d s c a l e s c o n s i s t o f a l t e r n a t i n g w h o l e s t e p s a n d h a l f s t e p s . Some people call
diminished scales “Octatonic” scales, as they have 8 notes (counting the root only once). This is
different from the major modes, which have only 7 notes, again counting the root only once.
However, the term “Octatonic” can also be used more generally to mean an eight note scale,
though it is commonly used in reference to a “diminished scale” instead of the more generic
reference.
T h e r e a r e a c t u a l l y t w o d i f f e r e n t f o r m s o f t h e d i m i n i s h e d s c a l e s , l i ke t w o s i d e s o f a c o i n .
The two forms both have alternating whole steps and half steps, but they differ in that they
start with different intervals. In the two different forms below, the W
W stands for “whole-step”
and the H stands for “half-step.” Consider the two forms of the diminished scale, noting the
starting intervals:
1. Whole-half Diminished
WHWHWHWH
This is most commonly referred to as the w h o l e - h a l f d i m i n i s h e d s c a l e . This scale is especially
useful for dealing with d i m i n i s h e d c h o r d s .
2. Half-whole Diminished
HWHWHWHW
This form of the diminished scale is generally referred to as the h a l f - w h o l e d i m i n i s h e d s c a l e .
This scale specifically corresponds with a 7 ( b 9 ) o r 1 3 ( b 9 ) d o m i n a n t c h o r d .
People sometimes use several other names for the “half-whole” and “whole-half diminished”
scales, but the other terms aren’t standardized, and are sometimes even contradictory.
m o s t c l e a r w ay s t o t a l k a b o u t t h e s e s c a l e s i s i n t e r m s o f t h e “ w h o l e - h a l f ” a n d t h e “ h a l f -
w h o l e” d i m i n i s h e d s c a l e s b e c a u s e i t t e l l s yo u ex a c t l y w h i c h s c a l e yo u a r e t a l k i n g a b o u t i n
t h e n a m e . I highly recommend using these two terms because there is no consensus on what
the alternate terms mean.
Confusingly, I have heard B OT H the “whole-half” and the “half-whole” diminished scales
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referred to as the “auxiliary diminished scale” by different sources, but since different people
mean opposite things regarding the term, I would recommend steering clear of it. It’s
ambiguous.
But just so you are familiar with the alternate names for these scales, the w h o l e - h a l f
d i m i n i s h e d s c a l e is sometimes called the “auxiliary diminished” or just the “diminished scale”.
The h a l f - w h o l e d i m i n i s h e d scale is sometimes referred to as the “auxiliary diminished scale”
(again, note the inherent contradiction because some people use the same term for the
opposite scale!) the “auxiliary diminished dominant” or even the “auxiliary diminished blues”
(not to be confused with the Mixo-Dorian blues scale for soloing over the blues
“whole-half diminished” and “half-whole diminished” are the most widely accepted
n a m e s , p r o b a b l y b e c a u s e t h ey a r e t h e m o s t c l e a r.
T h e t h r e e d i m i n i s h e d p i t c h c o l l e c t i o n s c a n a r b i t ra r i l y b e t h o u g h t o f a s s t a r t i n g o n C , F,
a n d G . I will list the pitch collections in terms of the half-whole diminished scale based on C, F,
and G, although I could have just as easily written out whole-half diminished scales starting on
C, F, and G instead. I like to think of the diminished scale in terms of starting on C, F, and G
simply because those are easy notes to remember, although these reference points are
completely arbitrary. Because of the symmetry of the diminished scale, any of the notes from
the three pitch collections could be replaced as the starting note for a diminished scale.
Depending on your starting note, the two types of diminished scales will alternate, starting
with a half-step or a whole-step as the starting interval.
Here are the three diminished pitch collections, arbitrarily starting on C, F, and G:
Now, imagine that you can start and end one of these three
scales on ANY of the notes in its pitch collection. (You can!)
Remember that since the diminished scale has alternating half-steps and whole-steps, you can
actually start on ANY note in the scale and ascend the pitch collection until you reach an octave
above your starting note. Depending on your starting note, you’ll either be playing a half-
whole diminished scale, or you’ll be playing a whole-half diminished scale. These two types of
diminished scales alternate with one another, as in the following diagram:
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Each chord represents the corresponding chord to a diminished
scale starting on the root of that chord. Notice that every other
note implies the same chord quality. T h i s i s a n i m p o r t a n t
concept: each diminished scale can start on eight different
n o t e s . Fo u r o f t h e s t a r t i n g n o t e s w i l l g i ve yo u a h a l f - w h o l e
d i m i n i s h e d s c a l e c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o a 7 ( b 9 ) c h o r d . T h e o t h e r f o u r s t a r t i n g n o t e s w i l l g i ve
yo u a w h o l e - h a l f d i m i n i s h e d s c a l e c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o a d i m i n i s h e d 7 t h c h o r d .
shows the qualities alternating with one another.
Another way of stating this concept is that each chord symbol represents the starting note of a
different eight-note diminished scale from one of the three diminished pitch collections. Again,
to help us think about these three pitch collections, I started them on C, F, and G. That’s just an
easy way to remember it, but I could have chosen any of the 8 tones in each of the 3 pitch
collection as the starting pitch. Starting on C, F, and G is simply a reference point. We could
just have easily started on C, Db, and D instead.
Hopefully this helps shed some light on the mysterious diminished scale! Because of the
symmetry of the scale, you can use each of the 3 diminished scales with eight different chords.
Here is an example of a diminished lick used over a 7(b9) chord, for further study.
-Camden Hughes
A
Abboouutt tthhee A
Auutthhoorr
Camden Hughes
http://camdenhughes.com/
Camden is a working jazz pianist, multi-instrumentalist, and music educator currently living near Boise, ID. He
teaches music at the Idaho Arts Charter School, and is the jazz adjunct professor at Northwest Nazarene
University. Check out his music at www.camdenhughesmusic.com.
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