D# Balinese Guitar Scale
Guitar scale in Open C tuning — fretboard diagram
D# Balinese in Open C — Notes and Intervals
The D# Balinese scale is a traditional five-note tuning from the Gamelan tradition, also known as Pelog. On Guitar, it contains the notes D#, E, F#, G#, A#, B, D. It creates a dark, meditative, and distinctively Southeast Asian atmosphere that sounds haunting and shimmering. Commonly used in Gamelan, World, Ambient, Film Scores. Notable players include Colin McPhee, Steve Reich. Use over drones and sustained bass notes. Traditional Gamelan music doesn't use chords — the scale is inherently melodic and interlocking.
Notes: D#, E, F#, G#, A#, B, D
Intervals: 1P, 2m, 3m, 4P, 5P, 6m, 7M
Degrees: 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 7
Formula: H-W-W-W-H-WH-H
Number of notes: 7
Tuning: Open C (C-G-C-G-C-E)
About Open C Tuning
Open C tuning (C-G-C-G-C-E) produces a C major chord when strummed open, with an enormous bass depth from the low C string (two whole steps below standard E). The tuning spans a vast tonal range that gives compositions an almost orchestral scope, making it a favorite for both delicate fingerstyle and crushing heavy music.
John Butler's 'Ocean' — one of the most famous modern fingerstyle compositions — is performed in Open C, showcasing the tuning's incredible dynamic range from thundering bass to shimmering harmonics. Devin Townsend uses Open C extensively across his catalog for its massive, wall-of-sound potential. Jimmy Page used it on Led Zeppelin's 'Friends' from Led Zeppelin III. Soundgarden also explored Open C. The three C strings and two G strings create powerful octave resonances that make even simple chord shapes sound huge.
Notable artists: John Butler, Devin Townsend, Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), Soundgarden, William Ackerman
Best for: Cinematic fingerstyle compositions, progressive metal walls of sound, post-rock textures, and any music that needs enormous tonal range from deep bass to bright treble
Musical Character
A Pelog-related tuning from Balinese Gamelan that creates a dark, meditative atmosphere with its distinctively non-Western intervals.
Explore This Scale in Other Tunings
- D# Balinese in Standard Tuning
- D# Balinese in Drop D
- D# Balinese in DADGAD
- D# Balinese in Open G
- D# Balinese in Baritone (B Standard)
- D# Balinese in 7-string
- D# Balinese in 8-string
- D# Balinese in Drop C
- D# Balinese in Drop B
- D# Balinese in Open D
- D# Balinese in Half Step Down
- D# Balinese in Open E
- D# Balinese in Open A
- D# Balinese in Double Drop D