It should be stressed here that neither the lydian dominant scale nor the altered scale has a tonic triad on its home note, because that is the root of the (unstable) dominant chord over which it is used. They are all taken from the same melodic scale ( c, d, e, f, g, a, b) and the name of each scale is listed next to its home note. These two jazz modes and the two tonal harmonic scales are listed below. These two modes are usually called the lydian dominant scale and altered scale. Two of the other modes of this scale are very familiar in jazz circles as melodic modes used as the basis for improvisation (or indeed composition) over dominant seventh type chords. The two tonal scales which can be derived from it are, however, amongst the least effective and convincing at providing a tonic of all the tonal This makes the scale particularly suitable for melodic purposes, including improvisation. The melodic scale is proper, and, like the diatonic scale, it is smooth with only two sizes of second (major and minor second). In jazz, usually only the ascending minor is used.The melodic scale can be represented by these notes: c, d, e, f, g, a, b. In this case, composers usually use the natural minor. Using the triad of the relative major is very common, but because this is based on the third degree of the minor scale, the raised seventh degree of the harmonic scale would cause an augmented triad. Many composers do not stick to the notes of only one of these scales when writing music. The ascending has the same upper tetrachord to the major scale, and the descending is the same as the natural minor: These two options are called the ascending melodic minor scale and descending melodic minor scale. They thought that a whole step between these two scale degrees was better for smooth melody writing, so they used the subtonic seventh, or raised the sixth scale degree. While some composers, like Mozart, have used this interval in melodic composition, other composers found it awkward. The interval between the sixth and seventh degrees of this scale (in this case F and G ♯) is an augmented second. The harmonic minor scale as a whole is sometimes called Nahawand-Hijaz in Arabic, or as Bûselik Hicaz in Turkish. The harmonic minor is also sometimes called the Mohammedan scale because its upper tetrachord is the same as the Hijaz jins, often found in Middle Eastern music. These are the diminished seventh chord (2nd, 4th, 6th and 7th degrees) and the augmented chord (the 3rd, 5th and 7th degrees). One way the harmonic minor is different to the natural minor is that it has two chords which have the same structure when inverted, so they do not belong to any key. Harmonic Minor Scale: 1 2 3 ♭ 4 5 6 ♭ 7 8įor example, in the key of A minor, the harmonic minor scale is: The harmonic minor scale is the same as the natural minor but with the seventh note raised by a semitone. If the white notes are played starting from the sixth step of that C scale, (from any A to the next A), then an A natural minor scale (the " relative minor" of C) is produced. For example, the white notes of a keyboard from one C to the next C up makes a C major scale. The natural minor scale is the same as the 6th mode (or Aeolian mode) of the major scale.