HearmonyMinor Scales: Natural, Harmonic and Melodic Minor Side by Side
A minor scale is a seven-note scale whose third note is a minor third above the tonic, which gives it a darker sound than the major scale. There are three forms: the natural minor (A B C D E F G), the harmonic minor, which raises the 7th (A B C D E F G♯), and the melodic minor, which raises the 6th and 7th on the way up (A B C D E F♯ G♯). All three share their first five notes and differ only at the top.
What is a minor scale?
A minor scale is any scale built on a minor third: from the tonic to the third note is three semitones (A to C), where the major scale has four (C to E). That one interval is what your ear reads as "minor", the same difference you hear between a major and a minor chord.
Compare C major with C minor, which start on the same note. C major is C D E F G A B; C natural minor is C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭. The 3rd, 6th and 7th are each lowered by a half step. The harmonic and melodic forms then put some of those top notes back up, for reasons that come down to how the scale ends.
Natural, harmonic and melodic minor side by side
The three minor scales are identical from 1 to 5 and differ only in the 6th and 7th degrees. This table gives the formula, the step pattern and two common keys.
| Scale | Formula | Steps (W = whole, H = half) | A | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Natural minor | 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 | W H W W H W W | A B C D E F G | E F♯ G A B C D |
| Harmonic minor | 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 7 | W H W W H W+H H | A B C D E F G♯ | E F♯ G A B C D♯ |
| Melodic minor (up) | 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 | W H W W W W H | A B C D E F♯ G♯ | E F♯ G A B C♯ D♯ |
| Melodic minor (down, classical) | ♭7 ♭6 5 4 ♭3 2 1 | same as natural minor | A G F E D C B A | E D C B A G F♯ E |
"W+H" in the harmonic minor is an augmented second: three semitones from F to G♯ in A, or from C to D♯ in E. It is the scale's most recognizable feature. The Wikipedia article on the minor scale covers the history of the three forms and how they are notated.
What is the natural minor scale?
The natural minor scale uses exactly the notes of its relative major key, starting from the 6th degree. A natural minor is the white keys from A to A, the same notes as C major. That shared key signature is how every minor key gets its name; the article on the relative minor lists all twelve pairs.
A few more keys, so you can see the pattern hold:
- D natural minor: D E F G A B♭ C (one flat, like F major)
- B natural minor: B C♯ D E F♯ G A (two sharps, like D major)
- C natural minor: C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭ (three flats, like E♭ major)
The natural minor sounds dark and a little open-ended. Its 7th degree (G in A minor) is a whole step below the tonic, so it doesn't pull strongly home. That note is called the subtonic, as the guide to scale degree names explains. Much rock, folk and pop in minor keys uses the natural minor exactly as it is.
Why does the harmonic minor raise the 7th?
The harmonic minor raises the 7th to create a leading tone, a note a half step below the tonic that pulls hard into it. In A minor, G becomes G♯, and G♯ to A sounds like an arrival in a way that G to A does not.
The name comes from the chords this makes possible. In A natural minor, the chord on the 5th degree is E minor (E G B), which sounds soft and weak before the home chord. With G♯, it becomes E major (E G♯ B), or E7 (E G♯ B D), and E7 to Am is as strong a cadence as G7 to C in a major key. That is why classical music in minor keys almost always uses the raised 7th at cadences, even when the melody otherwise uses natural minor.
Beethoven's "Für Elise", in A minor, shows it clearly. Early in the piece, the melody climbs E, G♯, B, outlining the E major chord that only exists thanks to the raised 7th, before turning back toward A minor.
The side effect is the augmented second between the ♭6 and the raised 7th (F to G♯). That three-semitone gap gives the harmonic minor the dramatic sound often described as "exotic" or Middle Eastern to Western ears.
What is the melodic minor scale?
The melodic minor scale raises both the 6th and the 7th on the way up, then lowers them again on the way down. Going up, A melodic minor is A B C D E F♯ G♯ A; going down, it is A G F E D C B A, the natural minor.
The raised 6th fixes the awkward augmented second. A singer climbing to the leading tone gets a smooth run of whole steps (E F♯ G♯) and a final half step to A. Coming down, there is no leading tone to resolve, so classical practice returns to the natural form.
Jazz players use the ascending form in both directions and often call it "jazz minor". If a theory exam asks for melodic minor, write the classical version, with different notes up and down, unless it says otherwise.
How do you hear the difference between the minor scales?
You hear the difference between the three minor scales in the last few notes before the tonic. Play each one slowly over a held A in the bass and listen to the top of the scale.
| Scale | Top of the scale in A | What you hear |
|---|---|---|
| Natural | F, G, A | two whole steps up to home; calm, folk-like, no strong pull |
| Harmonic | F, G♯, A | a wide, exotic leap, then a tight half step into home |
| Melodic (up) | F♯, G♯, A | a smooth, bright run; it sounds almost major until you remember the C |
A five-minute exercise
- Hold a low A. Play A natural minor up and down twice.
- Play A harmonic minor and stop on G♯. Wait. Notice how badly that note wants to move to A.
- Play A melodic minor up, then natural minor down, as one exercise.
- Play the chords Am–Em–Am, then Am–E–Am. The second version is the harmonic minor's V chord; hear how much more final it sounds.
- Repeat steps 1 to 3 in E minor (E F♯ G A B C D, with D♯ for harmonic, C♯ and D♯ for melodic).
Self-test: name each scale. D E F G A B♭ C♯ · G A B♭ C D E F♯ · B C♯ D E F♯ G A · C D E♭ F G A♭ B. Answers: D harmonic minor; G melodic minor (ascending); B natural minor; C harmonic minor.
Common mistakes
- Spelling G♯ as A♭. Every scale uses each letter once. A harmonic minor already has an A, so its raised 7th must be G♯.
- Using the raised notes on the way down. In classical melodic minor, the descending form is natural minor. Write the ♮ signs on the way back down.
- Mixing up relative and parallel minor. A minor is the relative minor of C major (same notes); C minor is the parallel minor (same tonic). Ask which one a question means before you spell anything.
If you are still building the major scale that all of these are compared against, start with the guide to the major scale.
Train the minor sound in Hearmony
Hearmony has no lesson that drills minor scales one by one, but it trains the sounds that set them apart. Chord Garden opens with major versus minor chords, the minor third that defines every minor scale; the guide to major vs minor chords explains the same contrast. Home Key Harbor names scale degrees in solfège after a I–IV–V–I cadence in a major key, and its "Add Ti" unit trains the leading tone pulling home, the very note the harmonic minor borrows. Interval Peaks covers half steps, whole steps, and minor and major sixths, which is what separates the 6th and 7th of each minor form.
For the order to learn these skills in, see the ear training for beginners plan. Hearmony is an iPhone app; you can find it on the App Store.