Relative Minor

[Mahumadi]

As far as Relative Minor is concerned, If the key stays the same while the note order changes, I was thinking you could use the major scale fingering, but it didnt seem to work out. Im not really sure what my question is, but maybe some insight?

[John Wentzien]

You can! same note "order" starting point is different.
You need to look up hamonic & melodic minor also.

[Jim Campbell]

Originally Posted by Mahumadi

As far as Relative Minor is concerned, If the key stays the same while the note order changes, I was thinking you could use the major scale fingering, but it didnt seem to work out. Im not really sure what my question is, but maybe some insight?

you can but start on the root note of the relative minor scale....you're probably confusing the intervals of the minor scale with the intervals of the relative major scale....what i've seen done is to make 12 fret neck diagrams,copy them onto sheets and draw scale/chord patterns yourself then work on them until you can hear them....color coding the patterns is a help

[Mahumadi]

I believe ive figured it out. I see that you have to use the minor scale.

For some reason I had a hunch that you could use the major scale W/H step formula to reach the same pitches in its relative minor.

I now see, after applying the minor scale W/H step formula, that it fits.

Maybe I was looking to use the same 3 string pattern for both, haha.

[MarkTAW]

There are 3 very important notes in both scales.

1, 4, 5.

In fact these are called "perfect" - "perfect fourth" and "perfect fifth."

The next step is to build a chord on each of these.

3 major chord will build a major scale. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 (whole whole half, whole whole whole half)

1, 3, 5
4, 6, 8 (octave)
5, 7, 9 (9, aka 2)

3 minor chord will build a minor scale. 1, 2, b3, 4, 5, b6, b7, 8 (whole half whole, whole half whole whole)

1, b3, 5
4, b6, 8
5, b7, 9

That's the logic behind the major & minor scales.

The relative minor is the minor scale that happens to have all the same notes as the major scale. Using a simple example, if you're in the key of G major, and then shift to the key of E minor - all the notes are the same, but the "root" changes & you have to orient yourself to the new root & the minor modality.

E minor

1 = E
2 = F#
3b = G <-- relative major starts here
4 = A
5 = B
6b = C
7b = D

G major

1 = G
2 = A
3 = B
4 = C
5 = D
6 = E <-- relative minor starts here
7 = F#

Same notes, but you start from a different place, and where you start is tremendously important.