Another Scale Question

[Would'e?]

Anyone want to take a stab at naming the pentatonic scale that contains the notes D, E, F, G, and C. It's like a D minor but instead of the 2nd and 4th being dropped it's the 5th and 6th. Or alternately like a C major.

There is absolutely no A or B of any flavor including flats in this scale. They are sour notes in the scale. D is the tonal center of the progression the bass line goes over.

[mutedeity]

Fred is a nice name.

It doesn't matter what you call it really. The functional part is the relative degrees. 1, 2, b3, 4, b7. Most of the time when you go to use a group of notes like that, you will find that the 5th is implied anyway.

[projectMalamute]

I hate to break it to ya but you can put a D pedal under any bass line you want to build with that scale and A is not going to be a sour note. And yes I'll go with Fred. Sounds good to me.

[Would'e?]

Originally Posted by projectMalamute

I hate to break it to ya but you can put a D pedal under any bass line you want to build with that scale and A is not going to be a sour note. And yes I'll go with Fred. Sounds good to me.

Seems weird to me too. It's the fifth and in rock it should be a no-brainer, but it just doesn't sound right. I'll check my tuning and try it again.

[DocBop]

I don't know I like the name Barney.

With that half-step between E and F it doesn't fit your common pentatonics. I'd say throw a Ab and A in there and make it a fun little D Bluesy scale.

[Would'e?]

Ok I checked the A again. It fits in the scale, though it doesn't sound great over the progression. Makes it too happy. B however is out for sure, Ab too. Could it be a hexatonic scale? It's a minor progression with celtic fiddle over a D-F-E-D progression.

[DocBop]

Those are just the notes you are using, so there could be other scale notes your not using. You have to analyze how you are using the notes because what you are trying to call a scale tone could just be a passing tone.

Also not everything is a scale it can simply be a melodic pattern. Take the chord that is being played the notes you think work, figure out the relationship to the root of the chord, then you can try and see if it fits a know scale.

[jweiss]

D natural minor or D dorian are the scales that fit those notes (among others).

D natural minor:

D E F G A Bb C D

D Dorian:

D E F G A B C D

If B doesn't sound right then it's D natural minor.

Minor pentatonic should also sound fine:

D F G A C D

Even though the perfect 5th (A) may not be played, I'd be surprised if it doesn't work over the notes in the melody.

What do you mean by this:

"instead of the 2nd and 4th being dropped it's the 5th and 6th"

[Would'e?]

I worked it more some last night and consulted with studybass.com. I guess it's D Dorian. In B Natural Minor, Bb is truly the only sour note. Like the A, a B will work, it just doesn't sound great in the context of the bass line of this verse. But B, though not sour, is even more "'out of place" sounding than A which works if used sparingly. So I guess what I'm working with is pretty much a melodic pattern of five or six notes drawn from D Dorian. Thanks for helping me figure this out guys. I just wanted to be able to describe it to myself in theoretical terms.