Playing Eb Dorian on Guitar
The Eb Dorian scale is Eb, F, Gb, Ab, Bb, C and Db. Those are the five flats of Db major, begun on the second note.
The shapes are the same as in any Dorian, with the root on the 11th fret of the low E string or the 6th fret of the A string. If a guitar is tuned down a half step, D Dorian shapes turn into Eb Dorian. A three notes per string exercise makes the pattern easier to keep in your head.
Play the Eb dorian scale
Use the step menu in the player to switch between the single-string run and the box shapes.
Notes of the Eb dorian scale
| Note | Degree | Interval | Semitones from root |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eb | 1 | Root | 0 |
| F | 2 | Major 2nd | 2 |
| Gb | b3 | Minor 3rd | 3 |
| Ab | 4 | Perfect 4th | 5 |
| Bb | 5 | Perfect 5th | 7 |
| C | 6 | Major 6th | 9 |
| Db | b7 | Minor 7th | 10 |
Structure
Eb dorian scale notes:
How the dorian scale is built:
The dorian scale is built from the degrees 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7, which gives the step pattern W-H-W-W-W-H-W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Counting in semitones from the root: 0, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10. That makes it a 7-note scale.
It is mode 2 of the Major Scale, so both scales share the same notes from a different starting point.
Eb Dorian Scale Guitar Patterns
Static diagrams of every position shown in the player above.
On one string (D)
Box pattern — position 1
Box pattern — position 2
Box pattern — position 3
Box pattern — position 4
Box pattern — position 5
3 notes per string — position 1
3 notes per string — position 2
3 notes per string — position 3
3 notes per string — position 4
3 notes per string — position 5
Chords in the Eb dorian scale
Stacking thirds on each degree of the scale gives these chords.
Related modes
These scales share the same notes as the dorian scale, starting from a different degree.
The dorian scale in other keys
Created by
Giancarlo is a musician (teaching guitar since 2000), software engineer, AI consultant and published researcher
