Guitar All-in-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition

Chapter 3

Tackling the Three Minor Scales

IN THIS CHAPTER

Practicing natural, melodic, and harmonic minor scales using five patterns

Performing pieces using the three minor scales

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Even though major scales rule the cosmos (see Book 7 Chapters 1 and 2), life would be pretty dull without their darker counterparts: minor scales. Minor scales and minor keys are sometimes described as “sad,” “foreboding,” “mysterious,” “haunting,” and even “creepy.” But minor scales can also be quite beautiful, and most music — even if it’s in a major key — uses some minor material to convey a richer message.

As a guitar student studying and perfecting scales, you have three different versions of minor scales that you must tackle. With the major scale, you have only one. The three minor scale flavors are called natural, melodic, and harmonic. They all have the characteristic “mournful” quality, which is characterized by the flatted 3rd degree (meaning, the third note of the scale is a half-step lower than in the major scale). However, some of their other notes are altered (namely, the 6th and 7th degrees of the scale), depending on the musical ...