F Minor Scale – Notes,

Chords and More

This lesson is all about the F minor scale. We will
take a look at the three types of minor scale, the
natural minor, melodic minor and harmonic minor
scales.

F Natural Minor Scale

Let’s start with the F natural minor scale. This scale
consists of the pitches, F, G, A♭, B♭, C, D♭, and
E♭. It has four flats.

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Fm Scale Note Intervals

1. Tonic: F is the 1st note of the F natural minor

scale.
2. Major 2nd: G is the 2nd note of the scale.
3. Minor 3rd: Ab is the 3rd note of the scale.
4. Perfect 4th: Bb is the 4th note of the scale.
5. Perfect 5th: C is the 5th note of the scale.
6. Minor 6th: Db is the 6th note of the scale.
7. Minor 7th: Eb is the 7th note of the scale.
8. Perfect 8th: F (one octave higher) is the 8th
note of the B natural minor scale.

Here’s a diagram of the F natural minor scale on

the treble clef.

Here’s the F natural minor scale on the bass clef.

Here’s the F natural minor scale on piano.

Fm Scale Degrees:

1. Tonic: F
2. Supertonic: G
3. Mediant: Ab
4. Subdominant: Bb
5. Dominant: C
6. Submediant: Db
7. Subtonic: Eb
8. Octave: F

The relative major of F minor is Ab major. Minor

keys and their relative major make use of the
same notes. The notes of the F minor scale as
we’ve seen are F, G, A♭, B♭, C, D♭, and E♭. For
the Ab major scale, it’s A♭, B♭, C, D♭, E♭, F and
G. The di"erence is the root note of the two scales.
The sixth note of a major scale becomes the root
note of its relative minor.

You can memorize this formula to form any

natural minor scale: whole step – half step – whole
step – whole step – half step – whole step – whole
step or w – h – w – w – h – w – w. (A whole step
skips a key while a half step moves to the next
key.) Let’s try this with the F minor scale. Let’s
start on F and move a whole step to G. From G
move a half step to Ab. Next, we move a whole
step from Ab to Bb. From Bb, let’s move a whole
step to C. Next, we go up a half step from C to Db.
From Db, we move up one whole step to Eb.
Finally, we move a whole step from Eb to F.

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What are the fingerings for the F minor scale?

They are as follows:

Notes: F, G, Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb, F

Fingerings (Left Hand ): 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 3, 2, 1
Fingerings (Right Hand): 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4

Thumb: 1, index finger: 2, middle finger: 3, ring finger:

4 and pinky finger: 5.

Let’s now take a look at the chords in the key of F

minor.

1. Chord i: F minor. Its notes are F – Ab – C.

2. Chord ii: G diminished. Its notes are G – Bb –
Db.
3. Chord III: Ab major. Its notes are Ab – C – Eb.
4. Chord iv: Bb minor. Its notes are Bb – Db – F.
5. Chord v: C minor. Its notes are C – Eb – G.
6. Chord VI: Db major. Its notes are Db – F – Ab.
7. Chord VII: Eb major. Its notes are Eb – G –
Bb.

Chords in the key of F minor. All about the key of

Fm and its chords.

F Harmonic Minor Scale

Let’s now take a look at the F harmonic minor
scale.

The harmonic minor scale raises the seventh note

of the natural minor scale by a half-step, when
ascending and descending the scale. For example,
the notes of the F natural minor scale are F – G –
A♭- B♭- C – D♭- E♭- F. For the F harmonic minor
scale, the notes are F – G – A♭- B♭- C – D♭- E – F.
The seventh note of the scale has been changed
from Eb to E. It’s now a half step (or semitone)
higher.

The formula for forming a harmonic minor scale is

W-H-W-W-H-W 1/2-H.

Harmonic Minor Scale Intervals

1. Tonic: The 1st note of the F harmonic minor

scale is F.
2. Major 2nd: The 2nd note of the scale is G.
3. Minor 3rd: The 3rd note of the scale is Ab.
4. Perfect 4th: The 4th note of the scale is Bb.
5. Perfect 5th: The 5th note of the scale is C.
6. Minor 6th: The 6th note of the scale is Db.
7. Major 7th: The 7th note of the scale is Eb.
8. Perfect 8th: The 8th note of the scale is F.

Here’s a diagram of the F harmonic minor scale on

piano.
The F harmonic minor scale on piano.

Here’s the F harmonic minor scale on the treble

clef.
The F harmonic minor scale on treble clef.

Here’s the F harmonic minor scale on the bass clef.

The F harmonic minor scale on bass clef.

F Melodic Minor Scale

Let’s now take a look at the melodic minor scale.
For this scale, you raise the sixth and seventh
notes by a half step as you go up the scale and
then return to the natural minor as you go down
the scale. The notes of the F melodic minor scale
ascending are: F – G – A♭- B♭- C – D – E – F. The
notes of the B melodic minor scale descending
are: F – G – A♭- B♭- C – D♭- E♭- F.

The formula for a melodic minor scale is W-H-W-

W-W-W-H. The descending formula is the natural
minor scale formula backwards.

Melodic F Minor Scale Intervals

1. Tonic: The 1st note of the F melodic minor

scale is F.
2. Major 2nd: The 2nd note of the scale is G.
3. Minor 3rd: The 3rd is Ab.
4. Perfect 4th: The 4th note is Bb.
5. Perfect 5th: The 5th note is C.
6. Major 6th: The 6th is D.
7. Major 7th: The 7th is E.
8. Perfect 8th: The 8th note of the scale is F.

Here’s a diagram of the melodic F minor scale on

piano.
The F melodic minor scale on piano.

Here’s the scale on the treble clef.

The F melodic minor scale on the treble clef.

Here’s the scale on the bass clef.

The F melodic minor scale on the bass clef.

Remember that for the melodic minor scale, when

descending, you play the natural minor scale.

Piano Scales – All Types

Piano Music Scales – Major and Minor

Be sure to check out the Piano For All piano

lessons. It’s my favorite online course for learning
how to play piano.

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