


Minor scales are named for their first note, which is also their last note-just like major scales. Learning to play the different types of minor scales on instruments allows performers to become familiar with the minor patterns most commonly used in Western classical music. Instead, these are useful categories primarily for instrumental performers. Likewise, a work is simply “minor” or “in minor ” musicians do not consider music to be “in” a specific type of minor scale (i.e.

These three types of minor scales should be thought of like flavors of ice cream ice cream is still ice cream regardless of whether it is chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, etc. There are three different types of minor scales: natural minor, harmonic minor, and melodic minor. Many musicians hear minor works as sounding more “sad” than major works, which they often hear as “happier.” The order of sharps and flats in major and minor key signatures are the same.Ī minor scale's third note is always a half-step lower than the third note of the major scale with the same name (e.g. Each major key signature has a corresponding relative minor key signature, whose tonic is three half-steps below the relative major’s tonic.The parallel relationship is when a major and minor key share a tonic note, while the relative relationship is when a major and minor key share a key signature. Major and minor keys share two different relationships.These are largely the same in minor as they are in major, except for the subtonic (te or \downarrow\hat7). Each note of a minor scale is also named with scale-degree names.There are a few new solfège syllables in minor including me (\downarrow\hat3), le (\downarrow\hat6)), and te (\downarrow\hat7)). Scale degrees in minor are the same as those in major.The melodic minor form of the minor scale consists of an ordered collection of half- and whole-steps in the ascending succession W-H-W-W-W-W-H and the descending succession W-W-H-W-W-H-W.The harmonic minor form of the minor scale consists of an ordered collection of half- and whole-steps in the ascending succession W-H-W-W-H-3Hs-H.The natural minor form of the minor scale consists of an ordered collection of half- and whole-steps with the ascending succession W-H-W-W-H-W-W.A minor scale's third note is always a half-step lower than the third note of the major scale with the same name.
