G Minor #7m Pentatonic Guitar Scale
Guitar scale in Double Drop D tuning — fretboard diagram
G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Double Drop D — Notes and Intervals
The G Minor #7m Pentatonic scale is a minor pentatonic variation that includes a major seventh, echoing the tension of the melodic minor scale. On Guitar, the notes are G, Bb, C, D, F#. It is used to create a Minor-Major mystery, providing a simple but effective way to add a dark, classical tension to modern solos. Commonly used in Jazz, Film Scores, Classical. Notable players include Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock. Use over mMaj7, mMaj9 chords. Adds classical tension to modern minor-key solos.
Notes: G, Bb, C, D, F#
Intervals: 1P, 3m, 4P, 5P, 7M
Degrees: 1 b2 3 4 5
Formula: WH-W-W-4-H
Number of notes: 5
Tuning: Double Drop D (D-A-D-G-B-D)
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
The major 7th against a minor 3rd creates the characteristic 'Minor-Major' tension — dark and unsettling yet refined.
Chord Progressions Using This Scale
- vi – viM7 – vi7 – II (Descending Minor Cliché)Classical / Pop — Romance & Intrigue
Explore This Scale in Other Tunings
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Standard Tuning
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Drop D
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in DADGAD
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Open G
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Baritone (B Standard)
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in 7-string
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in 8-string
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Drop C
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Drop B
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Open D
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Half Step Down
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Open E
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Open A
- G Minor #7m Pentatonic in Open C