Diminished second

diminished second
Inverseaugmented seventh
Name
Other names—
Abbreviationd2
Size
Semitones0
Interval class0
Just interval128:125, 524288:531441 (Pythagorean tuning)
Cents
Equal temperament0
Just intonation41.1, -23.46

In modern Western tonal music theory, a diminished second is the interval produced by narrowing a minor second by one chromatic semitone. In twelve-tone equal temperament, it is enharmonically equivalent to a perfect unison; therefore, it is the interval between notes on two adjacent staff positions, or having adjacent note letters, altered in such a way that they have no pitch difference in twelve-tone equal temperament. An example is the interval from a B to the C♭ immediately above; another is the interval from a B♯ to the C immediately above.


{
\override Score.TimeSignature
#'stencil = ##f
    \relative c'' {
        \time 4/4
        \set Score.tempoHideNote = ##t \tempo 1 = 20
        <b ces>1 <bis c?>
    }
}

In particular, it may be regarded as the "difference" between a diatonic and chromatic semitone. For instance, the interval from B to C is a diatonic semitone, the interval from B to B♯ is a chromatic semitone, and their difference, the interval from B♯ to C is a diminished second.

Being diminished, it is considered a dissonant interval.