What is a baritone guitar?

A baritone guitar is a guitar with a longer scale length (typically 27"-30") tuned lower than standard guitar. The most common tuning is B Standard (B-E-A-D-F#-B), a perfect fourth lower than standard. It produces a deep, beefy tone that bridges the gap between guitar and bass.

What scales sound best on baritone guitar?

All scales work beautifully on baritone guitar, but minor scales (natural minor, harmonic minor, Dorian) particularly shine due to the instrument's dark character. Major scales and Mixolydian mode create a warm, country-influenced sound. Pentatonic scales deliver a thick, bluesy tone.

Is a baritone guitar good for songwriting?

Absolutely. The baritone guitar's unique voice inspires different melodic and harmonic ideas than standard guitar. Its deep, moody character is perfect for atmospheric songwriting, creating textures and voicings that feel fresh and distinctive.

A Flat Three Pentatonic Guitar Scale

Guitar scale in Baritone (B Standard) tuning — fretboard diagram

Tuning

Frets

A Flat Three Pentatonic in Baritone (B Standard) — Notes and Intervals

The A Flat Three Pentatonic scale is a relatively rare jazz pentatonic scale. On Guitar, it contains the notes A, B, C, E, F#. It is an effective tool for navigating blues changes, providing a unique way to differentiate between the different chords of a progression with a quirky, minor-key twist. Commonly used in Jazz, Blues, Experimental. Notable players include Joe Henderson, Wayne Shorter. Use over m7, m7b5 chords. Effective for differentiating chords within a blues progression.

Notes: A, B, C, E, F#

Intervals: 1P, 2M, 3m, 5P, 6M

Degrees: 1 2 b3 4 5

Formula: W-H-4-W-WH

Number of notes: 5

Tuning: Baritone (B Standard) (B-E-A-D-F#-B)

Also known as: kumoi

About Baritone (B Standard) Tuning

The baritone guitar is tuned a perfect fourth lower than standard guitar (B-E-A-D-F#-B), producing a distinctly beefy tone with serious low-end depth that sits perfectly between guitar and bass. Its rich, dark voice has made it a secret weapon in film scoring, ambient music, and moody songwriting where you need that unmistakable low-end warmth without losing clarity.

Unlike simply tuning a standard guitar down (which causes floppy strings and muddy tone), the baritone guitar uses a longer scale length (typically 27"-30") designed specifically for lower tunings. This gives each note clarity and definition even in the lowest register. Session musicians, film composers, and bedroom producers alike reach for the baritone when they need dark, atmospheric textures, doom-laden riffs, or simply a different sonic palette that standard guitar can't deliver.

Film ScoringAmbientPost-RockDoom MetalShoegazeCountrySurf

Notable artists: Pat Metheny, Nels Cline, Brian Setzer, Baritone session players in Nashville

Best for: Moody songwriting, film scoring, ambient textures, doom metal, and any production that needs low-end depth with clarity

Musical Character

QuirkyUnusualDarkAngular

A rare jazz pentatonic that provides an unusual minor-key twist for navigating blues changes with a more angular, modern approach.

Explore This Scale in Other Tunings

← All Guitar scales in Baritone (B Standard) tuning