A melodic minor scale
- Notes
- A B C D E F# G#
- Formula
- 1 2 b3 4 5 6 7
- Steps
- W H W W W W H (W tone, H semitone)
- Also called
- A jazz minor, A ascending melodic minor
Seven notes from A up to the next A. Each note is written with the letter its degree names, one letter each, so the spelling follows the formula.
A melodic minor on the piano
From A4 to A5, the root in blue-green.
Intervals from A
| Note | Degree | Interval | Semitones |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 1 | root | 0 |
| B | 2 | major second | 2 |
| C | b3 | minor third | 3 |
| D | 4 | perfect fourth | 5 |
| E | 5 | perfect fifth | 7 |
| F# | 6 | major sixth | 9 |
| G# | 7 | major seventh | 11 |
A melodic minor on the guitar
Standard tuning, high e on top as in tablature, open strings to fret 12. Every dot is a note of the scale; the pattern repeats from fret 12 up.
The seven chords of A melodic minor
Every other note of the scale stacked on each note. Numerals are measured against the major scale on A, so a b marks a chord root a semitone lower than in major.
| Numeral | Chord | Notes | Sound |
|---|---|---|---|
| i | Am | A C E | |
| ii | Bm | B D F# | |
| bIII+ | Caug | C E G# | |
| IV | D | D F# A | |
| V | E | E G# B | |
| vi° | F#dim | F# A C | |
| vii° | G#dim | G# B D |
Seventh chords
This scale is where the V chord of A minor comes from; the key page lists it with the other chords of the key.
How A melodic minor is built
The natural minor with both its 6th and 7th raised (F becomes F# and G becomes G#), which removes the awkward three-semitone gap of the harmonic minor. It is the same as A major with only the 3rd lowered: C# becomes C.
In classical teaching this is the ascending form only: coming down, the melody falls back to the A natural minor (G F E D C B A). Jazz players use the raised form in both directions and call it the jazz minor; the diagrams here show that form.
Played some notes and not sure which scale they come from? The scale finder listens to the piano, a MIDI keyboard or the microphone and ranks all 180 scales.
What this page cannot do
- One spelling per scale. the root is spelled the way that needs the fewest sharps and flats.
- Equal temperament only. Blues and many folk traditions bend notes between these pitches, and Arabic and Turkish maqam scales use quarter tones that a piano cannot play.
- The guitar diagram shows standard tuning only and does not suggest fingerings; any note can be played in several places.
- The sound is a simple synthesised tone made in your browser, not a recorded instrument.