About the D Spanish Heptatonic scale
D Spanish Heptatonic is used for flamenco and Spanish-flavored music. Think of it as the Spanish gypsy scale, a phrygian dominant filled out to eight notes. It is D Bebop Locrian with the fourth lowered.
Its notes are D, E♭, F, F♯, G, A, B♭, and C. The formula is H W H H W H W W. It is the third mode of B♭ Bebop Major.
Also called Flamenco Scale and Spanish Eight-Tone.
Three open-string notes belong to D Spanish Heptatonic, namely A, D, and G. The lowest D on a standard-tuned guitar sits at the 5th fret of the A string.
Positions
Playable shapes for this scale up the neck. Tap any note to hear it.
8-position system
8 four-fret boxes, one per scale degree, each a single hand position with almost no shifting. The jazz and classical way, from William Leavitt's Berklee method.
Notes and intervals
| 1 | DD | Root |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | EbE♭ | Minor 2nd |
| 3 | FF | Minor 3rd |
| 4 | F#F♯ | Major 3rd |
| 5 | GG | Perfect 4th |
| 6 | AA | Perfect 5th |
| 7 | BbB♭ | Minor 6th |
| 8 | CC | Minor 7th |
| Steps | H W H H W H W W |
|---|---|
| Semitones | 1-2-1-1-2-1-2-2 |
| Degrees | 1 ♭2 ♭3 3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 |
Shapes
Chromatic
Circle of Fifths
Related scales
Spanish Heptatonic in other keys
Modes
The same notes, starting on a different note.
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