Scales › Dorian

Dorian scale

bright minor, major thirteenth

Dorian on the guitar: the fretboard diagram

Here is the Dorian scale laid out across the whole neck, from fret 0 to fret 15. The guide tones (3rd and 7th) are highlighted — they're what makes the scale's color sing. Use the key selector above to shift the shape along the neck and find the positions in your key.

What color?

A minor (b3, b7) lit up by a major sixth (thirteenth) that makes it the most open and least dark minor mode. The improviser reaches for it on minor ii chords and any minor where you want light without abandoning the minor color.

Origin & history

Dorian is the first tone of medieval plainchant; its name comes from ancient Greece, even though the Greek Dorian mode meant something else. In the 20th century, it became an emblematic color of modal jazz.

Listen

• "So What" — Miles Davis
• "Oye Como Va" — Santana
• "Eleanor Rigby" — The Beatles

Which chords to play it on?

The jazz consensus (Aebersold) recommends it on:

Sibling modes

The Dorian scale is one of the modes of the major scale : it shares exactly the same notes as the modes below, but built on a different degree of the parent scale (major (Ionian)).

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 →