Guitar scale · jazz minor
D Melodic Minor Scale
Natural minor with raised 6th and 7th degrees. Foundational to modern jazz and fusion.
Tap any note to hear it.
How to play D Melodic Minor on guitar
Find the root first: D is at fret 10 on the low E string and fret 5 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every D on the neck; the gold ones are the other chord tones (3rd, 5th and 7th), which are 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 10–14. 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 | D |
| 2 | E |
| ♭3 | F |
| 4 | G |
| 5 | A |
| 6 | B |
| 7 | C# |
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Questions
- What notes are in the D Melodic Minor Scale?
- The D Melodic Minor Scale has 7 notes: D, E, F, G, A, B, C#.
- What is the formula of the melodic minor scale?
- 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7, which is the step pattern W H W W W W H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play D Melodic Minor on the guitar?
- The root D is at fret 10 on the low E string and fret 5 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 10–14, and four more positions connect it up the neck.