Guitar scale · exotic
Ab Persian Scale
1 ♭2 3 4 ♭5 ♭6 7: double harmonic major with a lowered 5th. It contains the augmented 2nds of Double Harmonic Major.
Tap any note to hear it.
Ab Persian 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|-----------------------------4-5-8-| B|-------------------------5-8-------| G|-------------------5-6-7-----------| D|-------------5-6-7-----------------| A|-------4-5-7-----------------------| E|-4-5-8-----------------------------|
e|---------------------------------8-9-10-| B|--------------------------8-9-10--------| G|--------------------6-7-9---------------| D|-------------6-7-10---------------------| A|--------7-10----------------------------| E|-8-9-10---------------------------------|
e|---------------------------------------8-9-10-12-| B|----------------------------------9-10-----------| G|-----------------------------9-12----------------| D|--------------------10-11-12---------------------| A|-----------10-11-12------------------------------| E|-8-9-10-12---------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------12-15-| B|----------------------------------13-14-15-------| G|-------------------------12-13-14----------------| D|----------------11-12-14-------------------------| A|-------11-12-15----------------------------------| E|-12-15-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------15-16-17-| B|----------------------------------14-15-17----------| G|-------------------------13-14-17-------------------| D|-------------------14-17----------------------------| A|----------15-16-17----------------------------------| E|-15-16-17-------------------------------------------|
How to play Ab Persian on guitar
Find the root first: Ab is at fret 4 on the low E string and fret 11 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every Ab 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 4–8. 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 | Ab |
| ♭2 | A |
| 3 | C |
| 4 | Db |
| ♭5 | D |
| ♭6 | Fb |
| 7 | G |
Chords in Ab Persian
Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in Ab Persian; tap one to see its shapes.
| Degree | Chord | 7th chord | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | — | — | Tonic |
| ♭II | A | Amaj7 | Supertonic |
| III | — | — | Mediant |
| iv | Dbm | Dbm(maj7) | Subdominant |
| ♭V | — | — | Dominant |
| ♭VI+ | Fbaug | — | Submediant |
| VII | — | — | Leading tone / subtonic |
Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android
Practise Ab Persian 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.
Free
- 65 scales and 56 chord types in every key, with CAGED shapes
- A tuner with 10 tunings and a metronome from 30 to 260 BPM
- A new Daily 15 routine every day, plus free exercises
- Maqam & makam between the frets, and the Name the Note quiz
One purchase
- 282 exercises that play as tab, and routines with a speed trainer
- Chord & Scale Finder: tap the neck, get the name
- Theory Lab and the Progression Builder with 51 genre loops
- No subscription, ads removed
Questions
- What notes are in the Ab Persian Scale?
- The Ab Persian Scale has 7 notes: Ab, A, C, Db, D, Fb, G.
- What chords are in the Ab Persian Scale?
- The chords of Ab Persian are A (♭II), Dbm (iv), Fbaug (♭VI+).
- What is the formula of the persian scale?
- 1 ♭2 3 4 ♭5 ♭6 7, which is the step pattern H W+H H H W W+H H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play Ab Persian on the guitar?
- The root Ab is at fret 4 on the low E string and fret 11 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 4–8, and four more positions connect it up the neck.