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whole-half diminished scale

whole/half diminished

What color?

A symmetric octatonic scale starting with a whole step: b3, b5, bb7 plus the major seventh, the complete sound of dim7 and its tensions. The reflex on diminished chords, perfect for chromatic motifs that transpose by minor third after minor third.

Origin & history

The other symmetrical octatonic scale (alternating whole step/half step), in its other rotation. It fully covers the diminished seventh chord, which it naturally dresses up.

Which chords to play it on?

The jazz consensus (Aebersold) recommends it on:

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 →