Scales › Aeolian (natural minor)

Aeolian (natural minor) scale

melancholic natural minor

7 notes

RC 9D b3Eb 11F 5G b13Ab b7Bb

guide tones (3rd & 7th — the heart of the sound) avoid (strong clash)

C · D · Eb · F · G · Ab · Bb

Play in the key of

Aeolian (natural minor) on the guitar: the fretboard diagram

Here is the Aeolian (natural minor) scale laid out across the whole neck, from fret 0 to fret 15. The guide tones (3rd and 7th) are highlighted — they're what makes the scale's color sing. Use the key selector above to shift the shape along the neck and find the positions in your key.

E 11 5 b13 b7 R 9 b3 11 5 B R 9 b3 11 5 b13 b7 R 9 G 5 b13 b7 R 9 b3 11 5 b13 b7 D 9 b3 11 5 b13 b7 R 9 b3 11 A b7 R 9 b3 11 5 b13 b7 R E 11 5 b13 b7 R 9 b3 11 5 0123456789101112131415

What color?

The natural minor, b3, b6 (b13) and b7, the melancholic, sad color par excellence. The default choice for a minor vi or a minor with no particular twist, darker than Dorian but without the Phrygian's b9.

Origin & history

The natural minor, the relative minor of the major scale, formally recognized as a mode by Glarean in the 16th century. It is the "default" minor scale of countless pop, rock, and folk songs.

Which chords to play it on?

The jazz consensus (Aebersold) recommends it on:

minor seventh chord

Sibling modes

The Aeolian (natural minor) scale is one of the modes of the major scale : it shares exactly the same notes as the modes below, but built on a different degree of the parent scale (major (Ionian)).

major (Ionian) reference major color Dorian bright minor, major thirteenth Phrygian dark minor, Spanish b9 Lydian ♯11 brilliance Mixolydian natural dominant Locrian unstable half-diminished

Try it in a real chart

Paste a chord chart into the tool: Pentania tells you, chord by chord, when this scale fits — and what other colors are open to you. Open the tool →