C

Symmetric Scale

C Diminished (W-H)

8-note alternating whole-half scale. The inverse of H-W diminished.

Notes in C Diminished (W-H)

C1
D2
D#3
F4
F#5
G#6
A7
B8
C8

Chords in C Diminished (W-H)

8 diatonic chords
DegreeChordNotesQuality
iC°C – D# – F#diminished
iiD°D – F – G#diminished
iiiD#°D# – F# – Adiminished
ivF°F – G# – Bdiminished
vF#°F# – A – Cdiminished
viG#°G# – B – Ddiminished
viiA°A – C – D#diminished
viiiB°B – D – Fdiminished

Other Scales in C

MajorC, D, E, F, G, A, BNatural MinorC, D, D#, F, G, G#, A#Harmonic MinorC, D, D#, F, G, G#, BMelodic MinorC, D, D#, F, G, A, BDorianC, D, D#, F, G, A, A#PhrygianC, C#, D#, F, G, G#, A#LydianC, D, E, F#, G, A, BMixolydianC, D, E, F, G, A, A#LocrianC, C#, D#, F, F#, G#, A#Major PentatonicC, D, E, G, AMinor PentatonicC, D#, F, G, A#BluesC, D#, F, F#, G, A#Whole ToneC, D, E, F#, G#, A#Diminished (H-W)C, C#, D#, E, F#, G, A, A#Phrygian DominantC, C#, E, F, G, G#, A#Hungarian MinorC, D, D#, F#, G, G#, BLydian DominantC, D, E, F#, G, A, A#

Diminished (W-H) in All 12 Keys

CC D D# F F# G# A BC#D♭Db Eb E Gb G A Bb CDD E F G G# A# B C#D#E♭Eb F Gb Ab A B C DEE F# G A A# C C# D#FF G Ab Bb B Db D EF#G♭F# G# A B C D D# FGG A A# C C# D# E F#G#A♭Ab Bb B Db D E F GAA B C D D# F F# G#A#B♭Bb C Db Eb E Gb G ABB C# D E F G G# A#

Practice by Ear

Scale RecognitionIdentify the Diminished (W-H) scale by ear →Play C Diminished (W-H)Hear the scale and practice recognising it →Chord Recognition TrainerIdentify the chords above by ear →Progression TrainerIdentify common progressions in this key →

Chords in C Diminished (W-H)

The C diminished (w-h) scale contains the notes C, D, D#, F, F#, G#, A, B. 8-note alternating whole-half scale. The inverse of H-W diminished.

The diatonic chords in C diminished (w-h) are C° (i), D° (ii), D#° (iii), F° (iv), F#° (v), G#° (vi), A° (vii), B° (viii). These are the chords you can use when writing or improvising in this key — every note in each chord belongs to the C diminished (w-h) scale.

To develop your ear for the C diminished (w-h) sound, use the scale and chord trainers linked above. Being able to recognise these sounds by ear — not just read them from a chart — is what separates musicians who truly hear music from those who only read it.