A natural minor scale on bass

A · B · C · D · E · F · G

The course explains what this page shows in Lesson 22 · The relative minor.

The notes

  1. A1
  2. B2
  3. C♭3
  4. D4
  5. E5
  6. F♭6
  7. G♭7

The A natural minor scale is A, B, C, D, E, F, G.

You may also see it called Aeolian · 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7.

On the staff

ABCDEFGA

On a bass staff, the A natural minor scale is written A B C D E F G.

This is one octave of the A natural minor scale, written on the bass clef. Guitar and bass music is written an octave higher than it sounds, and the small 8 under the clef is the sign for that.

Why the A natural minor scale has no sharps or flats

  1. A1
  2. T
  3. B2
  4. S
  5. C♭3
  6. T
  7. D4
  8. T
  9. E5
  10. S
  11. F♭6
  12. T
  13. G♭7
  14. T
  15. A8

A scale is a pattern of steps, and this one is T S T T S T T: a tone, a semitone, a tone, and so on. S stands for a semitone, the distance of one fret or one key. T stands for a tone, which is two semitones. The pattern is what gives A natural minor its sound, and it stays the same whichever note you start on.

The second rule is that a seven-note scale uses each letter name once, from A to G, so its seven notes take seven different letters. That is why A natural minor is spelled the way it is, rather than with whichever accidental looks tidier.

Every letter already falls where the pattern needs it, so A natural minor is written with no sharps or flats at all.

The A natural minor scale needs no sharps or flats, because every letter already falls where the T S T T S T T pattern of steps needs it.

The pattern of steps is the part of a scale that never changes. The letter names take sharps or flats to fit that pattern, and a key signature is a record of those sharps or flats.

On the piano

♭3C4D5E♭6F♭7G1A2B♭3C4D5E♭6F♭7G1A2B♭3C4D5E♭6F♭7G1A2B♭3CC♯D♯F♯G♯A♯C♯D♯F♯G♯A♯C♯D♯F♯G♯A♯C1C2C3C4

The keyboard shows the same seven notes as a shape you can see. The coloured keys are the A natural minor scale, and you can click any key to hear it.

A natural minor scale on the whole neck

EADG123456789101112131415E5F♭6G♭7A1B2C♭3D4E5F♭6G♭7A1B2C♭3D4E5F♭6G♭7A1B2C♭3D4E5F♭6G♭7A1B2C♭3D4E5F♭6G♭7A1B2C♭3D4E5F♭6G♭7A1

50 notes of the A natural minor scale are marked across four strings.

This is every place the notes of the A natural minor scale fall on the bass, with each note's name and its scale degree. The roots are marked so you can find your bearings.

Position by position

Position 1 — starts on the ♭6
EADG123456♭6♭712♭345♭6♭712♭3
Position 2 — starts on the ♭7
EADG345678♭712♭345♭6♭712♭34
Position 3 — starts on the 1
EADG567891012♭345♭6♭712♭345
Position 4 — starts on the 2
EADG7891011122♭345♭6♭712♭345♭6
Position 5 — starts on the ♭3
EADG8910111213♭345♭6♭712♭345♭6♭7
Position 6 — starts on the 4
EADG10111213141545♭6♭712♭345♭6♭71
Position 7 — starts on the 5
EADG1213141516175♭6♭712♭345♭6♭712

The A natural minor scale has seven playable positions, at frets 1–5, 3–7, 5–9, 7–11, 8–12, 10–14 and 12–16.

Each shape starts on a different degree of the scale and fits inside five frets, so your hand can play all of it without moving.

One climb up the neck

EADG5678910111213141512♭345♭6♭712♭345♭6♭71TAB578107810129101214101214

The climb runs from fret 5 to fret 14 and plays fifteen notes.

This is one path from the lowest root to the top of the neck, and it plays each note once, never on two strings. It takes a different number of notes on different strings. The widest stretch on any one string is five frets.