Guitar scale · exotic
D 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.
D 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|-------------------------------------------10-11-14-| B|-------------------------------------11-14----------| G|----------------------------11-12-13----------------| D|-------------------11-12-13-------------------------| A|----------10-11-13----------------------------------| E|-10-11-14-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------14-15-16-| B|----------------------------------14-15-16----------| G|-------------------------12-13-15-------------------| D|----------------12-13-16----------------------------| A|----------13-16-------------------------------------| E|-14-15-16-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------14-15-16-18-| B|-------------------------------------15-16-------------| G|-------------------------------15-18-------------------| D|----------------------16-17-18-------------------------| A|-------------16-17-18----------------------------------| E|-14-15-16-18-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------18-21-| B|----------------------------------19-20-21-------| G|-------------------------18-19-20----------------| D|----------------17-18-20-------------------------| A|-------17-18-21----------------------------------| E|-18-21-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------21-22-| B|----------------------19-20-21-------| G|----------------19-20----------------| D|-------------20----------------------| A|-------21-22-------------------------| E|-21-22-------------------------------|
How to play D Persian 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 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 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 | Eb |
| 3 | F# |
| 4 | G |
| ♭5 | Ab |
| ♭6 | Bb |
| 7 | C# |
Chords in D Persian
Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in D Persian; tap one to see its shapes.
| Degree | Chord | 7th chord | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | — | — | Tonic |
| ♭II | Eb | Ebmaj7 | Supertonic |
| III | — | — | Mediant |
| iv | Gm | Gm(maj7) | Subdominant |
| ♭V | — | — | Dominant |
| ♭VI+ | Bbaug | — | Submediant |
| VII | — | — | Leading tone / subtonic |
Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android
Practise D 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 D Persian Scale?
- The D Persian Scale has 7 notes: D, Eb, F#, G, Ab, Bb, C#.
- What chords are in the D Persian Scale?
- The chords of D Persian are Eb (♭II), Gm (iv), Bbaug (♭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 D Persian 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.