D# Minor Six Diminished Bass Scale
Bass scale — fretboard diagram
D# Minor Six Diminished Scale — Notes and Intervals
The D# Minor Six Diminished scale is a sophisticated jazz scale popularized by the Barry Harris method. On Bass, its notes are D#, F, F#, G#, A#, B, C, D. It is the secret to professional voice leading in bebop, allowing for smooth, elegant movements between minor chords and their related tensions. Commonly used in Jazz, Bebop, Swing. Notable players include Barry Harris, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell. Use over m6 chords and their related dim7 chords. The scale alternates between chord tones and diminished passing tones, creating seamless bebop voice leading.
Notes: D#, F, F#, G#, A#, B, C, D
Intervals: 1P, 2M, 3m, 4P, 5P, 6m, 6M, 7M
Degrees: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 7 8
Formula: W-H-W-W-H-H-W-H
Number of notes: 8
How to Play D# Minor Six Diminished on Bass
On bass, locate D# on the A string at fret 6. Use a one-finger-per-fret approach starting from the root and span two to three strings. Keep your fretting hand relaxed and practice shifting between positions cleanly.
The D# Minor Six Diminished scale contains 4 sharps (D#, F#, G#, A#). This scale does not follow a traditional major or minor key signature, so reading from sheet music may require accidentals.
Practice Routine
Practice the D# Minor Six Diminished scale by playing it ascending with one rhythmic feel (straight eighth notes) and descending with another (swing or triplets) at 80 BPM. This dual approach trains both technical accuracy and rhythmic versatility with the 8 notes of the scale.
Experiment with simple two-chord vamps rooted on D# to let the characteristic intervals of the Minor Six Diminished scale come through clearly.
Bass Tips
On bass, use the D# Minor Six Diminished scale to build walking bass lines by targeting chord tones on strong beats and using scale tones as approach notes. This is the foundation of functional bass playing.
The D# Minor Six Diminished scale contains 8 notes (D#, F, F#, G#, A#, B, C, D). Use the interactive fretboard above to explore this scale on Bass with different tunings and fret ranges.
CAGED Positions & Patterns for D# Minor Six Diminished
The D# Minor Six Diminished scale can be played in 5 CAGED positions across the fretboard, each based on an open chord shape (C, A, G, E, D). As a 8-note scale, it also lends itself to 3-notes-per-string (3NPS) patterns that facilitate legato playing and diagonal shifting. Use the pattern selector above to isolate each position.