![d harmonic minor scale d harmonic minor scale](http://e.angusmoncrieff.com/scale-lookup-img/screenshots/D-minor-descant-recorder.png)
The changed chords from the natural minor are the root (Cmin(maj7), the 3rd (Ebmaj7(#5), the 5th (G7), and the 7th (Bdim7). Here it is harmonized with 7th chords:Ĭhanging that b7 to a major 7 clearly has changed the 7th chord harmonization up from the natural minor.
![d harmonic minor scale d harmonic minor scale](https://www.musictheoryacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/D-minor-Scales-Piano-Sheet-Music.jpg)
Keep in mind, when harmonizing this scale with 7th chords, you will need to make sure the B is natural and not flatted when present in a given chord. The only difference between the natural minor and the harmonic minor is the major 7. Formula for a harmonic minor scale: Root-2-b3-4-5-b6-7 Let’s move on to the next minor scale: the harmonic minor. If you are a horn player, play the arpeggios of each. Play the chords if you are a pianist, guitarist, or another chordal instrument.
#D harmonic minor scale how to#
If you are unsure how to spell some of these chords, I suggest checking out this jazz chords guide. If you go through each one of these chords and identify the intervals in relation to the root, you would find that they spell out each chord quality listed. All that’s left to do is stack a 3rd, 5th, and 7th on top of each root note. Now let’s take a look at the natural minor scale notated.Īll we do next is consider each note of the scale the root of an individual chord. Formula for a natural minor scale: Root-2-b3-4-5-b6-b7 To understand this better, let’s go through and harmonize the natural, harmonic, and melodic minor with 7th chords. If you want an even more in-depth explanation of this, I had special guest Dan Carillo on my podcast where he really dug into this concept.
#D harmonic minor scale series#
The Minor Diatonic Series doesn’t work as smoothly as the Major Diatonic Series, and the reason for that is there are three minor scales to deal with.
![d harmonic minor scale d harmonic minor scale](https://image.jimcdn.com/app/cms/image/transf/none/path/se8e61d5c6897280e/image/i6d9582adad6212e1/version/1327764737/image.jpg)
So consider the vi(b5) and the V chord exceptions. When harmonized with 7th chords, the Ab is present. Where this becomes complicated, is that the other chords in the series do not contain an A natural. This is what I find to be the most commonly used chord in the series as opposed to the Abmaj7. Note as well that for the vi(b5) chord we are borrowing the A natural from the melodic minor scale. The V often resolves to the I chord and therefore the V in the harmonic and melodic minor is appropriate in this case. Why? The V chord in traditional harmony is almost always a dominant 7 chord, never a minor 7 chord. Instead of it being a minor 7 (like it would be if it were a natural minor scale) it is turned into a dominant 7 chord. The V chord is borrowed from the harmonic and melodic minor harmonization. In the video at the top of this post, I explain minor harmony in more depth. It’s better to understand that we have three kinds of minor scales and we are drawing notes from each. However, I don’t think it’s best to think of it this way. You may observe that these are the same notes as the Dorian mode. The Minor Diatonic Series of 7th Chords is based on borrowing notes from the 3 different minor scales. It’s important to note that the harmonic and melodic minor are variations of the natural minor scale, and so understanding how to harmonize the natural minor scale with 7th chords is the place to start.īut before we do that, let’s take a look at what I call the Minor Diatonic Series of 7th Chords. In this lesson, I’m going to use the three basic kinds of minor scales: natural minor, harmonic minor, and melodic minor. It’s important for jazz musicians to know how to do this because it helps us understand chord progressions, helps us understand how chords can be related by a consonant scale and can help us become better improvisers. I go into much more detail on how I come up with the results, which will help you understand harmonizing minor scales better. If you don’t know how to harmonize a major scale or haven’t checked out that lesson yet, I would encourage you to do so. This lesson is continuing off of the How to Harmonize a Major Scale with 7th Chords post.