Guitar scale · exotic
A Persian Scale
1 ♭2 3 4 ♭5 ♭6 7: double harmonic major with a lowered 5th. It contains the augmented 2nds of Double Harmonic Major.
Tap any note to hear it.
A Persian Scale tab: all 5 positions
Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.
e|-----------------------------5-6-9-| B|-------------------------6-9-------| G|-------------------6-7-8-----------| D|-------------6-7-8-----------------| A|-------5-6-8-----------------------| E|-5-6-9-----------------------------|
e|------------------------------------9-10-11-| B|----------------------------9-10-11---------| G|---------------------7-8-10-----------------| D|--------------7-8-11------------------------| A|---------8-11-------------------------------| E|-9-10-11------------------------------------|
e|------------------------------------------9-10-11-13-| B|------------------------------------10-11------------| G|------------------------------10-13------------------| D|---------------------11-12-13------------------------| A|------------11-12-13---------------------------------| E|-9-10-11-13------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------13-16-| B|----------------------------------14-15-16-------| G|-------------------------13-14-15----------------| D|----------------12-13-15-------------------------| A|-------12-13-16----------------------------------| E|-13-16-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------16-17-18-| B|----------------------------------15-16-18----------| G|-------------------------14-15-18-------------------| D|-------------------15-18----------------------------| A|----------16-17-18----------------------------------| E|-16-17-18-------------------------------------------|
How to play A Persian on guitar
Find the root first: A is at fret 5 on the low E string and fret 0 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every A on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (3, ♭5, 7), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.
Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 5–9. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | A |
| ♭2 | Bb |
| 3 | C# |
| 4 | D |
| ♭5 | Eb |
| ♭6 | F |
| 7 | G# |
Chords in A Persian
Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in A Persian; tap one to see its shapes.
| Degree | Chord | 7th chord | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | — | — | Tonic |
| ♭II | Bb | Bbmaj7 | Supertonic |
| III | — | — | Mediant |
| iv | Dm | Dm(maj7) | Subdominant |
| ♭V | — | — | Dominant |
| ♭VI+ | Faug | — | Submediant |
| VII | — | — | Leading tone / subtonic |
Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android
Practise A Persian anywhere, even offline.
This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.
Free
- 65 scales and 56 chord types in every key, with CAGED shapes
- A tuner with 10 tunings and a metronome from 30 to 260 BPM
- A new Daily 15 routine every day, plus free exercises
- Maqam & makam between the frets, and the Name the Note quiz
One purchase
- 282 exercises that play as tab, and routines with a speed trainer
- Chord & Scale Finder: tap the neck, get the name
- Theory Lab and the Progression Builder with 51 genre loops
- No subscription, ads removed
Questions
- What notes are in the A Persian Scale?
- The A Persian Scale has 7 notes: A, Bb, C#, D, Eb, F, G#.
- What chords are in the A Persian Scale?
- The chords of A Persian are Bb (♭II), Dm (iv), Faug (♭VI+).
- What is the formula of the persian scale?
- 1 ♭2 3 4 ♭5 ♭6 7, which is the step pattern H W+H H H W W+H H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play A Persian on the guitar?
- The root A is at fret 5 on the low E string and fret 0 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 5–9, and four more positions connect it up the neck.