B♭ / A♯ Dorian Scale

72 scales in every key on a map of the whole neck: positions, patterns, and every note played as it lights up.

The B♭ Dorian scale has 7 notes: B♭ – C – D♭ – E♭ – F – G – A♭. Dorian is a minor scale with a bright major 6th. That one note lifts the sadness of the natural minor and gives a cool, soulful sound: the scale of funk vamps, Santana solos and modal jazz. In Indian music it is Kafi thaat.

B♭ and A♯ are the same pitch, so this page covers both names; the notes are spelled from B♭, the way the key is usually written. Compared with the B♭ major scale it has ♭3 (D♭ instead of D), ♭7 (A♭ instead of A).

The explorer above is set to B♭ Dorian: the whole neck is mapped, and you can zoom into any of its 7 positions, change the labels to degrees or fingers, and hear it up, down and in patterns.

B♭ Dorian scale notes

Degree	Note	Interval from B♭	Frets above the root	Sargam
1	B♭	R	0	S
2	C	M2	2	R
♭3	D♭	m3	3	g
4	E♭	P4	5	M
5	F	P5	7	P
6	G	M6	9	D
♭7	A♭	m7	10	n

Steps between the notes: W H W W W H W (W = two frets, H = one fret). Start on any B♭ and follow those steps up one string to play the scale.

B♭ Dorian scale positions on the guitar

With three notes on every string, B♭ Dorian has seven patterns that climb the neck. Position 1 starts on B♭ on the low E string at fret 6; each next position starts on the next note of the scale. In standard tuning, high string first:

Position	E (1st)	B	G	D	A	E (6th)
Position 1 frets 6–11	8 9 11	8 9 11	6 8 10	6 8 10	6 8 10	6 8 9
Position 2 frets 8–13	9 11 13	9 11 13	8 10 12	8 10 11	8 10 11	8 9 11
Position 3 frets 9–15	11 13 15	11 13 14	10 12 13	10 11 13	10 11 13	9 11 13
Position 4 frets 11–16	13 15 16	13 14 16	12 13 15	11 13 15	11 13 15	11 13 15
Position 5 frets 13–18	15 16 18	14 16 18	13 15 17	13 15 17	13 15 16	13 15 16
Position 6 frets 15–20	16 18 20	16 18 20	15 17 18	15 17 18	15 16 18	15 16 18
Position 7 frets 16–21	18 20 21	18 20 21	17 18 20	17 18 20	16 18 20	16 18 20

Chords in the B♭ Dorian scale

Stacking every other note of the scale on each degree gives these chords. They are the chords a song in B♭ Dorian is made from, and the chords this scale fits over.

	i	ii	♭III	IV	v	vi°	♭VII
Triad	B♭m	Cm	D♭	E♭	Fm	Gdim	A♭
7th chord	B♭m7	Cm7	D♭maj7	E♭7	Fm7	Gm7♭5	A♭maj7

Where you hear it

B♭ Dorian is used in funk, soul, jazz, Latin rock and Celtic music. It sounds best over minor 7th chords, especially a i7 – IV7 vamp.

Backing tracks to practise B♭ Dorian

B♭ minor blues B♭ minor rock B♭ minor funk

How to practise it

Play position 1 (frets 6–11) slowly, up and down, saying the note names.
Play it with the pattern set to In 3s, then In 4s, at a tempo where every note is clean.
Learn position 2 and how it joins position 1: the notes they share are where your hand moves.
Switch the labels to degrees and find every B♭ (1) in each position.
Improvise over a backing track, ending your phrases on B♭.