In this Chapter, I am going to talk about a harmonic minor scale. The harmonic minor scale is the same as the natural minor scale but with a raised seventh. So, let us take a look at the scale. Here is A harmonic minor.
And here are the notes. On the low e string, I am playing, A, B, C. On A string, I am playing D, E and F. Now, I am going to jump all the way into the note G sharp found on the sixth fret of the D string and then I am back to root note A on the seventh fret of the D string. So, there is one octave of A harmonic minor.
We can continue the scale on the G string. I played B, C and D. On the B string, we will play E and F, on the high E string, G sharp and A.
So now, the question is, why harmonic minor? Why is this a great scale to know? And the answer is that often when playing in minor keys, we are playing minor songs, let us say if we are on the key of A minor. When we get to the five chord, often the five chord is a major triad or a dominant seven chord. For example, A minor to E seven. It sounds great, right? That E seven chord really takes us back to the A minor chord. A very strong resolution from E Seven back to the A minor.
Now, both of these chords do not belong to the natural minor scale. They belong to the harmonic minor scale. If we were to stay within the natural minor scale, that E chord would be a minor chord. It does not sound bad but it does not have that pull from the E chord back to the A chord. And you see in this chord, you wanted to go back to.
And that is where the harmonic minor scale really serves its purpose over the five chord in the minor key. So, check out this next solo, its in A minor. I am going to use the A harmonic minor scale over the E seven chord. So, we will check out and then come back and talk about it.
Now, before we get in to the solo, let us take a look at the chords that we are soloing over. It is always a good idea. Starting off with two bars in A minor, two bars at F, two bars at D minor, two bars at E seven. So here, I am soloing with the A natural minor scale for the A minor F and D minor chords and then for the E seven chord, I am going to play A harmonic minor. Okay, so here is the first lick, one, two, three, four.
Pretty simple, just using the A minor pentatonic scale here, starting off five to seven on the D string, followed by five on the G, seven to five on the D. At this point, the F chord comes in, I am going to play five on the D string and seven on the A string, five, seven on the D, hammer on five to seven on the G, then play seven to five on the G. And that is the first phrase.
Now, the D minor chord comes around and here is our next phrase. Starting off on the seventh fret of the D string, five on the G, five hammer onto seven on the G, five on the B, seven to five on the G, back to seven on the D, five G, two times on the seventh fret of the G string, strike that one more time, five on the B, seven to five on the G string. Here is the phrase we have just learned, one, two, three, four.
So, now the E chord comes in and I am going to use notes from the A harmonic minor scale. So, here is the lick, one, two, three, four. So, starting on the G string, ten, nine, nine, ten, nine, nine, on the B string, 13, 12, 12 on the B string, 13, 12, 12 on the high E string, 17, 16, on the high E, back to 17, up to 19, bend up a half step and then release the bend.
So once again, the whole phrase of the E seven chord that uses the A harmonic minor scale, one, two, three, four. Here is the next phrase, one, two, three.
So starting on the beat number four, I am going to play on the 10th fret of the B string two times, 13 to 10 and then bend up two whole steps from the 13th fret of the B string without releasing the bends, so upwards only. Back down to the 10th fret on the B string, bend up a whole step, release the bend, pull up to the eight fret back to the 10th fret on the B string. Shift positions once again, we are going to bend up a whole step from the eight fret of the B string, release the bend then play five, eight on the B string. Seventh fret of the G string, similar idea, bend up a whole step, release the bend back to five on the G string. Now, I am going to bend up a whole step from the seventh fret of the G string then play five on the B, five on the high E. Six to five on the B, seven to five on the G.
So once again, here is the phrase, which starts on beat number four, one, two, three. At this point, the D minor chord comes in and here is the next phrase. So, seven on the D string, five to seven on the G string, bend up a half step from the fifth fret of the B string, release the bend and then play seven to five on the G string. Once again, play five to seven on the G string, five on the B, half step down from the fifth fret of the B string, release the bend and then play seven to five on the G string. Here is the phrase we just learned.
And our final phrase which is played over the E seven chord uses the A harmonic minor scale and goes like this.
So starting on a high E string, I am going to play 12, 13, 12, 10, 12, 10, B string 13, E string 10. Now, to the B string, 12, 13, 12, 10, 12, 10, G string 13, back to 10 on the B string. Now, to the G string, 10, 13, 10, nine, 10, nine, D string 12, back to nine on the G string and the phrase ends D string 12, 10, 12, nine, 10, nine, 11, 12. So here is that whole run over the E seven chord, one, two, three, four.
And here is whole solo once again, one, two, three, four.
And that is an example of how to use the harmonic minor scale.
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