D Melodic Minor Guitar Scale
Guitar scale in Double Drop D tuning — fretboard diagram
D Melodic Minor in Double Drop D — Notes and Intervals
The D Melodic Minor scale, often called the Jazz Minor, offers a more sophisticated and fluid sound than the natural minor. On Guitar, it contains the notes D, E, F, G, A, B, C#. It is a vital tool for modern jazz improvisation, allowing players to navigate complex dominant chords and create elegant, tension-filled melodic lines that avoid the exotic jump of the harmonic minor. The diatonic chords of D Melodic Minor are Dm6, Em7, F+maj7, G7, A7, Bm7b5, C#m7b5. Commonly used in Jazz, Fusion, Contemporary Classical, Progressive. Notable players include Pat Metheny, John Coltrane, Allan Holdsworth. Use over m(Maj7), m6 chords. Its modes cover nearly every altered dominant situation in jazz. The 'jazz minor' is the single most important advanced scale system.
Notes: D, E, F, G, A, B, C#
Intervals: 1P, 2M, 3m, 4P, 5P, 6M, 7M
Degrees: 1 2 b3 4 5 6 7
Formula: W-H-W-W-W-W-H
Number of notes: 7
Tuning: Double Drop D (D-A-D-G-B-D)
Diatonic Chords
Dm6 — Em7 — F+maj7 — G7 — A7 — Bm7♭5 — C♯m7♭5
About Double Drop D Tuning
Double Drop D tuning (D-A-D-G-B-D) lowers both the 6th and 1st strings from E to D, creating a symmetrical frame of D notes around the standard middle four strings. This gives a distinctly resonant, jangly character that has been beloved in folk-rock and acoustic music since the late 1960s.
Neil Young used Double Drop D extensively — 'Cinnamon Girl' features its distinctive droning riff, and 'The Needle and the Damage Done' showcases its intimate fingerpicking potential. Jimmy Page used it on Led Zeppelin's 'Going to California'. Fleetwood Mac's 'The Chain' also employs this tuning. Because only two strings change (both by just one whole step), Double Drop D is one of the easiest alternate tunings to learn — most standard chord shapes on the inner four strings remain unchanged.
Notable artists: Neil Young, Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), Fleetwood Mac, Crosby Stills Nash & Young
Best for: Folk-rock songwriting, D-centric acoustic arrangements, droning fingerpicking patterns, and any song that benefits from rich D-string resonance on both outer strings
Musical Character
In jazz, only the ascending form is used (1, 2, b3, 4, 5, 6, 7). It is the parent scale for seven crucial modes including the Altered scale and Lydian Dominant.
Chord Progressions Using This Scale
- vi – viM7 – vi7 – II (Descending Minor Cliché)Classical / Pop — Romance & Intrigue
Explore This Scale in Other Tunings
- D Melodic Minor in Standard Tuning
- D Melodic Minor in Drop D
- D Melodic Minor in DADGAD
- D Melodic Minor in Open G
- D Melodic Minor in Baritone (B Standard)
- D Melodic Minor in 7-string
- D Melodic Minor in 8-string
- D Melodic Minor in Drop C
- D Melodic Minor in Drop B
- D Melodic Minor in Open D
- D Melodic Minor in Half Step Down
- D Melodic Minor in Open E
- D Melodic Minor in Open A
- D Melodic Minor in Open C