Harmonic minor scale: formula and sound

The harmonic minor scale is natural minor with one change: the seventh note is raised by a half step. In A minor, that means G becomes G♯, so the scale reads A B C D E F G♯ A. That single note gives the scale a distinctive, dramatic sound, and it is the reason that the dominant chord in minor keys sounds as strong as it does.

The harmonic minor formula

Starting from the tonic, the steps are whole, half, whole, whole, half, one and a half, half. Written short: W-H-W-W-H-W+H-H, where W+H is an augmented second, the distance of three half steps. That makes it the only common scale in this family with a gap bigger than a whole step.

In numbers, the scale is 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 7. Compared with a major scale it has two lowered notes (the third and the sixth) and the natural seventh, so you can also think of it as a major scale with a flat third and a flat sixth.

Why is it called harmonic?

The name comes from harmony, not from sound. Composers raised the seventh note so that the chords of a minor key could behave like those of a major key. The dominant chord (built on the fifth degree) needs a leading tone as its third to sound strongly like it wants to go home. In A minor, the dominant chord is E major, E G♯ B, and that G♯ comes from this scale.

So the scale grew out of the chords. It collects the notes that the main chords of a minor key use, including the raised seventh that the key signature does not show.

How it sounds

The leading tone gives a strong pull to the tonic, and the step and a half gives an exotic, tense color. Because of this, you will hear it in classical pieces at moments of drama, in film music for mystery and suspense, in flamenco and in many folk traditions. Guitarists in rock and metal use it for the same reason.

The step and a half can feel awkward when you sing it. That is why the melodic form was invented, to smooth the line when the melody moves stepwise through the upper part of the scale.

Harmonic minor in other keys

To build it in any key, write the natural minor scale first, then raise the seventh. In D minor, the natural scale is D E F G A B♭ C, and raising C gives C♯. In E minor, the natural scale is E F♯ G A B C D, and raising D gives D♯.

In sharp keys, watch the spelling

In some keys the raised seventh needs a double sharp. In G♯ minor, the natural seventh is F♯, so the raised seventh is F𝄪 (F double sharp), which sounds the same as G but has the letter F. The scale must use each letter name once, so you cannot write it as G. The site spells these for you in the chart below this text.

Harmonic minor in practice

• Play the scale slowly and listen for the half step below the tonic.
• Play the dominant chord of the key (the major chord on the fifth note) and notice that its third is the raised seventh.
• Compare natural and harmonic minor back to back: only one note changes.
• Try improvising a short tune on the scale in A minor, and feel the pull of G♯ to A.

Common questions

Students often ask whether the raised note belongs in the key signature. It does not. The key signature of A minor is empty, and the G♯ is written as an accidental each time it is needed, then it applies to that measure only. Another common question is whether harmonic minor is a mode of the major scale. It is not, since it has the augmented second, though it has modes of its own that jazz players use.

Next, compare it with melodic minor, which smooths the gap, and read the minor scales overview to see how the three forms fit together.

Harmonic minor scale in every key

Check yourself

Related pages

• Minor scales: natural, harmonic and melodic
• Melodic minor scale: formula, sound and use
• Relative minor and relative major keys
• Key signatures: how to read every key
• A minor scale
• Major scales: how they work in all 12 keys