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Learn The Relative Minor
- Thread starter Mikel9478
- Start date
In many instances you can just move three frets down from whatever the major key is (ie C on the eighth fret of the E string down to A on the fifth fret) to find the relative minor. Or you could find the sixth note in the scale of the major key you’re in. However you get there, just play a minor arpeggio (or scale) using that new note as the root.
A minor scale in A has the exact same notes as the major scale in C but it orders the notes differently and gives you get a different sound while still being harmonically correct. It can give you new ideas by getting you outside of the same pattern you’re used to playing. Good luck!
A minor scale in A has the exact same notes as the major scale in C but it orders the notes differently and gives you get a different sound while still being harmonically correct. It can give you new ideas by getting you outside of the same pattern you’re used to playing. Good luck!
I've got a couple minor relatives, my niece and nephew. Consult your family tree.
It depends on what you mean by 'Relative minor'.
If you mean learn/memorise those major and minor keys that share a key signature then @Malcolm35 has given you all you need. The rule is that for any major key, its relative minor key is named after its 6th degree. That's it.
If you mean learn minor scales then relative minor is the wrong term. Minor scales are natural minor, melodic minor or harmonic minor. There is no 'relative minor' scale, and all of these scales are considered 'diatonic' within the minor key.
If you are looking for harmonisation of the minor key then things are a little more interesting that the major key. Because all 3 minor scale types are 'diatonic', the minor key encompasses 9 notes, not 7. This means that instead of 7 triads there are 13. Other than the tonic triad, all of the other degrees have two possible harmonisations. For example, using A minor, the '3' chord can be major (III = C, E, G) or augmented (III+ = C, E, G#). Likewise the '5' chord can be minor (v = E, G, B) or major (V = E, G#, B). I can post the full harmonisation later if you say this is what you want/need.
The relative minor is also called the Aeolian and as Govner pointed out, its 3 frets down from the Rootof the major scale. See Malcolm's chart.
Minor scales are best played with index finger on the root of the major scale.
I think of all scales in terms relative to the major scale. So the relative minor/Aeolian is a b3 b6 b7.
C D Eb F G Ab Bb C
You should find those notes on your fretboard and memorize their relative position.
You can play the first octave easily without changing hand position. Going beyond the first octave, there are a lot of options on how/when to shift, depending on where you want to wind up..
Good Luck.
Minor scales are best played with index finger on the root of the major scale.
I think of all scales in terms relative to the major scale. So the relative minor/Aeolian is a b3 b6 b7.
C D Eb F G Ab Bb C
You should find those notes on your fretboard and memorize their relative position.
You can play the first octave easily without changing hand position. Going beyond the first octave, there are a lot of options on how/when to shift, depending on where you want to wind up..
Good Luck.
Jeez. How many *** times? Aeolian is coincident with the Natural minor scale. The concept of Relative Minor is concerned with keys, not scales. There is no such scale as Relative Minor.
Not sure what that is supposed to mean, but there is a dedicated thread for mis-information.
It may just be sloppy usage in some texts that causes confusion, and has caused me confusion. My MI Harmony and Theory book says:
-Major and minor keys that are built on different tonic notes but share the same key signatures are described as relative keys.
-For each major key there is a relative minor …. (and vise versa)
-The distance from the tonic of a major key to the tonic of its relative minor is always down a minor third
The book also talks about the natural minor. And I always wondered why there weren’t 4 relative minor keys for each major key (e.g. dorian, phrygian, aeolian and locrian) because they all share the same key sig.
How would you differentiate those keys in the tiny space at the beginning of the staff, and can you imagine trying to keep each one in mind while sightreading? I'm satisfied by plain-old accidentals.
The book is right, but you have to keep in mind that keys and scales are not the same thing. Within the minor key there are three common scales - natural, melodic and harmonic. The key encompasses all three. That means within the minor key you have both the major and minor 6th and 7th. So 9 diatonic notes compared to 7 in the major key. This in turn makes for 13 diatonic triads compared to 7 in the major key. And 16 diatonic '7th' chords compared again to the 7 in the major key, including two on the tonic and 2 each on the two 7ths (since each chord has two possible 7ths):
I may be confusing keys and scales because I’ve never thought about them as separate things. I’m thinking you wouldn’t need to adjust key signatures any more than you have to to differentiate between C and Am, which are determined based on the harmony and resolutions, right? The key of Dm (based on dorian) would also have no accidental in the key sig, and thus is a relative minor of C. Or can you just not call a mode a key? Is that reserved only for the natural minor/aeolian mode?
After a little head scratching I figured out the 9 notes you referred to, but thanks for confirming. Is this considered “classical” theory, or general theory, I’ve never hear it expressed this way. I know the three scales, but I’ve also heard something equivalent to “all 12 notes” belong to each key (not scale!). Are these statements reconcilable?
The key signature for a piece of music tells you one thing, which is: What notes are flatted or sharped (what "black" keys are you using)? If you encounter no accidentals in that piece, you can rely on that key signature for the scale. In minors, it's actually rather rare to have no accidentals, so the actual scale - which may change during the piece! - does not reliably predict the scale.
Exactly - a mode is not a key. Modes are all about melody - modality is established through melody and tension/resolution are achieved through melody.
Except that the key of D minor is derived from F major and therefore has 1 flat in the signature. You are right that a Dorian tune would have no #/b in the signature but you would have to actually read and/or play the tune to be sure that it was Dorian. If there is no signature, the clue would normally be to look for accidentals and/or a cadence involving an A or A7 chord. If you find Bb and C# as accidentals then in all likelihood it is D minor. If you find neither then D Dorian is probably a safe bet, but only the tune will reveal the truth.
In 99% of cases if something is in the minor key the leading tone is invariably identified with an accidental - C# in D minor, G# in A minor, D natural in Eb minor, etc. Even on a chord chart, if the '5' chord is major 'V' not minor 'v', that amounts to the same thing. At least IME.
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Hi. I can understand everything you wrote in this thread but I'm looking to do a deeper dive into minor theory. Are there any books you would recommend? Preferably ones with exercises to follow so I don't have to make up my own. I find my theory and my practice get too far apart when I try to make a practice regime. Hope that makes sense
TBH, at this point in time the best way is to study/analyse/deconstruct music or songs written in the minor keys. Get inside the melodies, write out and codify the harmonies including the bass 'parts' (Roman Numeral analysis is best here), then the solos. Without knowing the type/genres of music that float your boat it is impossible to recommend anything.
Yes Steve said it right: there are much more scales than keys.
But there is no consensus on notating modes. I notate a D Dorian piece for example with no accidentals because it is a tonality on its own but some prefer to notate it with a b flat. Both are correct. Also depending on the piece and it’s context.
But there is no consensus on notating modes. I notate a D Dorian piece for example with no accidentals because it is a tonality on its own but some prefer to notate it with a b flat. Both are correct. Also depending on the piece and it’s context.
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