Scales › half-whole diminished

half-whole diminished scale

diminished dominant, ♭9/♯9/♯11 tensions

What color?

A symmetric octatonic scale that stacks b9, #9, #11 and 13 on a dominant (3, b7). The tense, unstable color of V7b9, ideal for chromatic lines in four-note groups that repeat as they climb.

Origin & history

A symmetrical octatonic scale (alternating half step/whole step), Olivier Messiaen's mode 2. Dear to the Russian composers (Rimsky-Korsakov, Stravinsky) and to jazz, where it dresses up 7♭9 dominants.

Listen

• "Petrushka" — Igor Stravinsky

Which chords to play it on?

The jazz consensus (Aebersold) recommends it on:

Try it in a real chart

Paste a chord chart into the tool: Pentania tells you, chord by chord, when this scale fits — and what other colors are open to you. Open the tool →