Guitar scale · exotic
A Bebop Dorian Scale
Dorian with a passing natural 3rd, giving eight notes so that chord tones fall on the beat.
Tap any note to hear it.
A Bebop Dorian Scale tab: all 5 positions
Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.
e|---------------------------------5-7-8-9-| B|-----------------------------7-8---------| G|---------------------5-6-7-9-------------| D|---------------5-7-9---------------------| A|---------5-7-9---------------------------| E|-5-7-8-9---------------------------------|
e|---------------------------------------7-8-9-10-| B|----------------------------------8-10----------| G|---------------------------7-9-11---------------| D|-----------------7-9-10-11----------------------| A|----------7-9-10--------------------------------| E|-7-8-9-10---------------------------------------|
e|---------------------------------------------9-10-12-| B|------------------------------------10-12-13---------| G|----------------------------9-11-12------------------| D|-----------------9-10-11-12--------------------------| A|---------9-10-12-------------------------------------| E|-9-10-12---------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------------12-14-15-| B|----------------------------------------13-14-15----------| G|-------------------------------12-14-16-------------------| D|----------------------12-14-16----------------------------| A|----------12-14-15-16-------------------------------------| E|-12-14-15-------------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------------14-15-17-| B|-------------------------------------------15-17----------| G|-------------------------------14-16-17-18----------------| D|----------------------14-16-17----------------------------| A|----------14-15-16-17-------------------------------------| E|-14-15-17-------------------------------------------------|
How to play A Bebop Dorian on guitar
Find the root first: A is at fret 5 on the low E string and fret 0 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every A on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (♭3, 5, ♭7), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.
Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 5–9. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | A |
| 2 | B |
| ♭3 | C |
| 3 | C# |
| 4 | D |
| 5 | E |
| 6 | F# |
| ♭7 | G |
Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android
Practise A Bebop Dorian anywhere, even offline.
This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.
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Questions
- What notes are in the A Bebop Dorian Scale?
- The A Bebop Dorian Scale has 8 notes: A, B, C, C#, D, E, F#, G.
- What is the formula of the bebop dorian scale?
- 1 2 ♭3 3 4 5 6 ♭7, which is the step pattern W H H H W W H W (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play A Bebop Dorian on the guitar?
- The root A is at fret 5 on the low E string and fret 0 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 5–9, and four more positions connect it up the neck.