A minor: scale and chords

The A minor scale: natural, harmonic and melodic

A B C D E F G

Key signature: none, no sharps or flats, the same as C major. Whole and half steps: whole, half, whole, whole, half, whole, whole; the half steps are B–C and E–F. Natural minor is the Aeolian mode: the C major scale started on its 6th note. The degrees: A tonic, B supertonic, C mediant, D subdominant, E dominant, F submediant, G subtonic (G♯ in harmonic minor: leading tone).

Harmonic minor: A B C D E F G♯. The raised seventh, G♯, leads up into A; the jump from F to G♯ is a step and a half, the sound that makes harmonic minor easy to recognise. Melodic minor: A B C D E F♯ G♯ going up, the natural A G F E D C B coming down. Jazz players keep F♯ and G♯ both ways.

Play harmonic minor Play melodic minor

Piano fingering, the same as C major and for all three forms: right hand 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5, the thumb on A and D; left hand 5 4 3 2 1 3 2 1, the 3rd finger crossing over to F.

Guitar, open position: A string open, 2 and 3 (A, B, C), D string open, 2 and 3 (D, E, F), G string open and 2 (G, A). At the 5th fret: low E 5 7 8 (A B C), A 5 7 8 (D E F), D 5 7 (G A), G 4 5 7 (B C D), B 5 6 8 (E F G), high E 5 7 8 (A B C). For harmonic minor, play G♯ in place of G: G string fret 1 in open position; D string fret 6 and B string fret 9 at the 5th fret.

In natural minor the chord on the fifth degree is Em. Harmonic minor turns it into E (E G♯ B) and E7, which pull back to A much harder.

In Hz, from the keynote in octave 4: A4 440.0 · B4 493.9 · C5 523.3 · D5 587.3 · E5 659.3 · F5 698.5 · G5 784.0

Play the scale

A minor pentatonic scale · A minor pentatonic scale on guitar · A minor scale on guitar · A harmonic minor scale · A melodic minor scale · A minor scale on piano · A blues scale

The A minor chord (Am) on guitar and piano

A C E

Am is A, C and E. It is called minor because of its third: C is a minor third above A, three semitones, where A major has C♯, four semitones up. Am, Amin and A− all mean A minor; a plain A means A major.

Guitar: x 0 2 2 1 0 (low E to high E, x = not played): index finger on the B string at the 1st fret, middle and ring on the D and G strings at the 2nd, the A and high E ringing open, the low E silent. It is the open E major shape moved over by one string.

Am7, x 0 2 0 1 0, lifts one finger and adds G. Barre: 5 7 7 5 5 5, the Em shape at the 5th fret.

Piano: three white keys. Right hand 1 3 5, left hand 5 3 1. Inversions: C E A (Am/C) and E A C (Am/E).

Play Am

Chords in A minor

Tap a chord to hear it.

Am (tonic), Dm (subdominant) and E or Em (dominant) are the main three. Songs in A minor usually borrow the major E or E7 from harmonic minor for the turn home: Am Dm E7 Am.

The loop plays i–VI–III–VII: Am F C G.

Keys that mix with A minor

On the Camelot wheel A minor is 8A (Open Key 1m). Tracks in these keys mix without a clash:

• 8B C major relative major, the same seven notes
• 7A D minor one step down
• 9A E minor one step up
• 10A B minor two steps up, the energy boost

A minor or C major? Same notes, same empty key signature. Listen for where the music rests and check the last chord: Am means A minor, C means C major. A G♯ or an E major chord is a sure sign of A minor. Same keynote, the other mode: A major (11B), three sharps, three notes apart (C♯, F♯, G♯).

Where A minor sits

Choir parts (soprano C4–G5, alto G3–D5, tenor C3–G4, bass F2–D4, where two part-writing guides agree): A3–A4 fits the alto part; A2–A3 fits the bass part; no whole A-to-A octave fits the soprano or tenor parts. Find your own range.

As a sub or an 808, the keynote is A1 at 55.0 Hz, or A2 at 110.0 Hz an octave up. Tune an 808 to A.

What plays

Drums, an organ bass and a pluck, the Brumm app's own sounds, four bars at 123 BPM, one chord per bar. The arrows move bass and chords a semitone; the drums stay.

The A minor pentatonic scale

Five notes: A C D E G, the natural minor without B and F. It is often the first scale guitarists learn, as a box at the 5th fret, index finger on the 5th, ring or little finger on the 7th and 8th:

The A blues scale adds one note, E♭, between D and E: A C D E♭ E G. A minor pentatonic has the same five notes as C major pentatonic.

Play the pentatonic Play the blues scale

Chord progressions in A minor

Songs and pieces in A minor

• Beethoven: "Für Elise", WoO 59
• Mozart: the "Rondo alla Turca", the A minor finale of the Sonata K. 331 (which ends in A major), and the Sonata K. 310
• Grieg and Schumann: both their piano concertos. Bach: Violin Concerto, BWV 1041
• "Stairway to Heaven" (Led Zeppelin), "House of the Rising Sun" (The Animals), "Losing My Religion" (R.E.M.), "Smooth" (Santana)

Alicia Keys called her 2001 debut album Songs in A Minor.

Then hum over it

The hum button opens Brumm with a short line in the key over a beat. Hum yours and it becomes an instrument. No account, no upload.

Sources

Scales and chords: Open Music Theory, musictheory.net. Camelot, Open Key: Mixed In Key, Mixgraph. Open strings: Wikipedia. Choir parts: Open Music Theory, Geneseo. Guitar shapes: Wikipedia, Barre chord. Hz: A4 = 440 Hz, ISO 16.

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