D♯ melodic minor

D♯1E♯2F♯♭3G♯4A♯5B♯6C𝄪7

Minor third, major sixth and seventh — the ascending form, and the parent of most of the altered sounds below.

The same sounds spelled from the other side are E♭ melodic minor.

on ukulele on piano

Written out

Fig. 2 · D# melodic minor, ascending

Every accidental is written in, rather than left to a key signature, so the letters can be read one at a time.

The step pattern

D♯WE♯HF♯WG♯WA♯WB♯WC𝄪HD♯

What is true of it

D♯ melodic minor is D♯, E♯, F♯, G♯, A♯, B♯ and C𝄪, and back to D♯.

Its steps are W – H – W – W – W – W – H, where W is a whole step and H a half.

Written correctly it needs 8 alterations, C𝄪 among them. That is what the letters force, and it is also why nobody writes music in this key: the same notes spelled from the other side are easier to read.

On the same tonic, D♯ major differs from it by exactly one note.

Across the first twelve frets of the guitar its notes fall in 43 places, which is what makes a scale a shape rather than a list.

Chords made only of these notes

D♯mminor F♯augaugmented G♯major G♯7dominant seventh A♯major A♯augaugmented A♯7dominant seventh

Found by testing every chord in the catalogue against these 7 sounds, not chosen.

Other scales on D♯

D♯ natural minorminor D♯ harmonic minorminor D♯ majormajor D♯ harmonic majormajor D♯ Dorianmode

C mel min C♯ mel min D♭ mel min D mel min E mel min F mel min F♯ mel min G♭ mel min all 374