When is the harmonic minor scale used

Here is what is included when you pay the one-time fee to upgrade your account. Hi Brian Harmonic minor is a subject that has befuddled me for years. Thanks for making it clear. I appreciate how you present and explain things in an easy to understand way. Love these lessons. Have a great day. I know by looking at the comments you probably still get a lot of confused questions.

I think it is mainly the result of watching videos back to back. And in realizing the one note G that makes this chord change possible, we apply it to create the harmonic Am scale from the natural Am scale?

After all E is not diatonic to the key of Am. Thanks for all your lessons and time. Haha, ya it can definitely be overwhelming, but everything will click for you one day and it will all make perfect sense! Once again man, you have enlightened me. I threw those chords into my looper and felt that G actually sound right! Thanks again!!! This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Sign in. Forgot your password? Get help. Create an account. Password recovery. Learn Jazz Standards. This major V chord in a minor key can be thought of as coming from the harmonic minor scale, and getting this major V chord in a minor key is the main purpose of this scale—hence the name harmonic minor. The harmonic minor scale, with its raised 7th, gives its V chord a major 3rd instead of a minor 3rd like the natural minor scale's v chord has.

The raised 7th of the harmonic minor scale is what creates the major triad or dominant 7th built on the 5th note of the key. The v chord is Em E-G-B. Therefore, many musicians think of the major V chord in minor keys as a temporary change from the natural minor scale to the harmonic minor scale. For instance, a soloist might approach playing a major V chord in a minor key by applying the harmonic minor scale while using the natural minor scale on the other chords in the key.

There are a number of approaches depending on the specific song. You might wonder about minor key signatures and use of the harmonic minor scale. Minor keys always use the natural minor scale for their key signature even when the harmonic minor scale is used.

The different 7th will have an accidental sharp or natural applied to it whenever the 7th of the harmonic minor comes up. Don't forget the accidental persists through the end of the bar. Basslines and the Harmonic Minor Scale As a bass player, you may or may not need to worry about applying the harmonic minor scale in the same way as a soloist.

That is, if your bassline is simply outlining triads or chord tones, thinking about changing scales has little advantage; you will play the right notes just by playing the right chord tones.

But, if you were playing a more scalar, melodic bass part, fill or solo, you might apply the harmonic minor scale over the major V chord in a minor key. In the following clip I play a little fill applying the harmonic minor scale.

You can hear it sounds a little more exotic or unusual due to the wider minor third interval between the 6th and 7th scale degrees.

Just as you can build chords from the major scale and natural minor scale, you can build chords from the harmonic minor scale.

As we've discussed, the V chord of the harmonic minor scale is a major triad or dominant 7th chord. We will show you some examples of how to use this scale. Do not get confused, since we are not saying that it is the harmonic minor scale of the fifth degree. For example, if the E7 chord appears resolving in the Am chord, we would use the A minor harmonic scale at the time that E7 was being played.

Be careful not to confuse these ideas! Practice this scale a lot in this context and try to identify songs that contain this V7 — Im7 progression. Your ear will quickly get used to this resolution and will be sharp to perceive it when it appears. As a curiosity, a musical style that is based a lot on the minor harmonic scale is Spanish music. Go to: Melodic minor scale. Back to: Module 9. Toggle navigation.