Also written Hungarian Minor, Nawa Athar or Nihavent
D gypsy minor contains D, E, F, A♭, A, B♭, C♯. Its Box 1 root on string 3, fret 5 sits mid-neck for easy shifts.
D gypsy minor raises the fourth of D harmonic minor to A♭, creating a ♭5 and an augmented second between F and A♭. The major seventh C♯ remains for a strong leading tone. Compare it with D harmonic minor to hear the altered fourth.
Use D gypsy minor over D minor and D 5th chords for a dark, exotic color. The ♭5 A♭ works over E 7th flat 5, and the major seventh C♯ fits F augmented. It suits Eastern European and Middle Eastern styles.
Practise Box 1 first: the root sits on string 3, fret 5, covering frets 0–3 and setting up Box 2.
D gypsy minor in box 1 runs from fret 0 to fret 3, 10 notes across 4 strings, from E on the E string at fret 0 up to B♭ on the G string at fret 3. The root falls on the D string at fret 0.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 0, 1 | E, F |
| 3 (A) | 0, 1 | A, B♭ |
| 2 (D) | 0, 2, 3 | D, E, F |
| 1 (G) | 1, 2, 3 | A♭, A, B♭ |
D gypsy minor in box 2 runs from fret 4 to fret 7, 10 notes across 4 strings, from A♭ on the E string at fret 4 up to D on the G string at fret 7. The root falls on the A string at fret 5 and the G string at fret 7.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 4, 5, 6 | A♭, A, B♭ |
| 3 (A) | 4, 5, 7 | C♯, D, E |
| 2 (D) | 6, 7 | A♭, A |
| 1 (G) | 6, 7 | C♯, D |
D gypsy minor in box 3 runs from fret 6 to fret 9, 10 notes across 4 strings, from B♭ on the E string at fret 6 up to E on the G string at fret 9. The root falls on the G string at fret 7.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 6, 9 | B♭, C♯ |
| 3 (A) | 7, 8 | E, F |
| 2 (D) | 6, 7, 8 | A♭, A, B♭ |
| 1 (G) | 6, 7, 9 | C♯, D, E |
D gypsy minor in box 4 runs from fret 10 to fret 13, 10 notes across 4 strings, from D on the E string at fret 10 up to A♭ on the G string at fret 13. The root falls on the E string at fret 10 and the D string at fret 12.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 10, 12, 13 | D, E, F |
| 3 (A) | 11, 12, 13 | A♭, A, B♭ |
| 2 (D) | 11, 12 | C♯, D |
| 1 (G) | 10, 13 | F, A♭ |
D gypsy minor, position 1 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 2 and runs from fret 0 to fret 4, three notes on each of 4 strings. The root falls on the D string at fret 0.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 0, 1, 4 | E, F, A♭ |
| 3 (A) | 0, 1, 4 | A, B♭, C♯ |
| 2 (D) | 0, 2, 3 | D, E, F |
| 1 (G) | 1, 2, 3 | A♭, A, B♭ |
D gypsy minor, position 2 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the ♭3 and runs from fret 1 to fret 6, three notes on each of 4 strings. The root falls on the A string at fret 5.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 1, 4, 5 | F, A♭, A |
| 3 (A) | 1, 4, 5 | B♭, C♯, D |
| 2 (D) | 2, 3, 6 | E, F, A♭ |
| 1 (G) | 2, 3, 6 | A, B♭, C♯ |
D gypsy minor, position 3 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the ♭5 and runs from fret 3 to fret 7, three notes on each of 4 strings. The root falls on the A string at fret 5 and the G string at fret 7.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 4, 5, 6 | A♭, A, B♭ |
| 3 (A) | 4, 5, 7 | C♯, D, E |
| 2 (D) | 3, 6, 7 | F, A♭, A |
| 1 (G) | 3, 6, 7 | B♭, C♯, D |
D gypsy minor, position 4 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 5 and runs from fret 5 to fret 9, three notes on each of 4 strings. The root falls on the A string at fret 5 and the G string at fret 7.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 5, 6, 9 | A, B♭, C♯ |
| 3 (A) | 5, 7, 8 | D, E, F |
| 2 (D) | 6, 7, 8 | A♭, A, B♭ |
| 1 (G) | 6, 7, 9 | C♯, D, E |
D gypsy minor, position 5 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the ♭6 and runs from fret 6 to fret 11, three notes on each of 4 strings. The root falls on the E string at fret 10 and the G string at fret 7.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 6, 9, 10 | B♭, C♯, D |
| 3 (A) | 7, 8, 11 | E, F, A♭ |
| 2 (D) | 7, 8, 11 | A, B♭, C♯ |
| 1 (G) | 7, 9, 10 | D, E, F |
D gypsy minor, position 6 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the 7 and runs from fret 8 to fret 13, three notes on each of 4 strings. The root falls on the E string at fret 10 and the D string at fret 12.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 9, 10, 12 | C♯, D, E |
| 3 (A) | 8, 11, 12 | F, A♭, A |
| 2 (D) | 8, 11, 12 | B♭, C♯, D |
| 1 (G) | 9, 10, 13 | E, F, A♭ |
D gypsy minor, position 7 of the three-notes-per-string shapes, starts on the root and runs from fret 10 to fret 14, three notes on each of 4 strings. The root falls on the E string at fret 10 and the D string at fret 12.
| String | Frets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 10, 12, 13 | D, E, F |
| 3 (A) | 11, 12, 13 | A♭, A, B♭ |
| 2 (D) | 11, 12, 14 | C♯, D, E |
| 1 (G) | 10, 13, 14 | F, A♭, A |
Every chord here uses only notes from the scale. Tap one to open it.
The notes are D, E, F, A♭, A, B♭, C♯. It has a ♭3, ♭5, and major 7. The ♭5 creates an augmented second with the ♭3.
D minor and D 5th are the tonic chords. E 7th flat 5 uses the ♭5, and F augmented uses the ♭3 and ♯5. The major 7 C♯ fits C♯ major and C♯ minor.
D gypsy minor raises the fourth degree to A♭. This creates a ♭5 and an augmented second between F and A♭. The rest of the scale matches D harmonic minor.