music theory 103 – basic relative, harmonic minor

scales and keys

Basic harmonic minor scales: i ii° III+ iv V VI vii viii/i

Am 1 sharp/0 flats A B C D E F G# A
Bm 3 sharps/0 flats B C# D E F# G A# B
C#m 5 sharps/0 flats C# D# E F# G# A B# C#
Dm 2 sharps/0 flat D E F G A A# C# D
Em 2 sharps/0 flats E F# G A B C D# E
F#m 4 sharps/0 flats F# G# A B C# D E# F#
G#m 5 sharps/0 flats G# A# B C# D# E F##* G#

* A double sharp (##) means you raise the note two half-steps (two keys, or two frets). An F## is, essentially, a G, but since
the key here is G#m, there is no G. You can’t have a G in a G# key, so the note is indicated as F##.

A “relative minor” scale or key signature is the minor key that has the same key signature as a particular
major scale. The root of a major key signature is always three half-steps (three keys, or three frets) higher
than it’s relative minor. Another way to think of it is that the relative minor is always the sixth note of the
major scale. Thus,

Major scale/key Relative minor Major scale/key Relative minor

C Am G Em
D Bm A F#m
E C#m B G#m
F Dm

Why it helps to know that: Songs in minor keys are often difficult to work into a set list. If you are
working with a song in a minor key, it’s best to pair it with a song (or a whole
set of songs) in its relative major key.

For example, it will be easier to flow from a song in Dm to a song in F (or vise
versa), than from a Dm key signature to an E key signature (or any other key
signature for that matter).

There are three kinds of minor scales/keys: natural, harmonic and melodic.

- The natural minor scale is the “pure” minor; it maintains the exact key signature of it’s relative major.
- The harmonic minor is the most commonly used (and the one outlined at the top of the page); it
raises the seventh one half-step in order to sound more aesthetic. Thus, if you have a “7” chord in a
minor key signature, the seventh that is added should be according to the harmonic minor scale.
- The melodic minor raises the sixth and the seventh when ascending, but changes to mimic the natural
minor when descending.