E flat natural minor scale

E flat natural minor scale uses the notes E♭, F, G♭, A♭, B♭, C♭ and D♭. Counted from E♭, its formula is 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7, and the distance between neighbouring notes follows the pattern W H W W H W W.

Notes, formula and steps

Read from the root, the E flat natural minor scale contains root (E♭), major 2nd (F), minor 3rd (G♭), perfect 4th (A♭), perfect 5th (B♭), minor 6th (C♭) and minor 7th (D♭). The step pattern W H W W H W W (W = whole step, H = half step, W+H = a step and a half) is the same for every natural minor scale, so you can rebuild it from any note. This scale has 6 flats: E♭, G♭, A♭, B♭, C♭ and D♭.

How to play the E flat natural minor scale on piano

Start on E♭ and play E♭, F, G♭, A♭, B♭, C♭ and D♭ going up, then come back down. Say the note names out loud while you play: it links the sound, the keys and the names. Practise hands separately first, slowly with the metronome, then speed up.

How to play the E flat natural minor scale on guitar

On guitar, the root E♭ sits at fret 11 on the low E string and fret 6 on the A string. Start from one of these roots and play the notes of the fretboard map above in order, one string after another. The whole-neck view shows every place the E flat natural minor scale appears, so you can connect the positions instead of staying in one box.

Chords in the E flat natural minor scale

Stacking every other note of the scale gives one chord per degree: E♭m, Fdim, G♭, A♭m, B♭m, C♭ and D♭. These are the chords you can combine to write a progression that stays in the E flat natural minor scale.

Relative and parallel scales

The E flat natural minor scale shares its notes with the F sharp major scale: same notes, different starting point and a different mood. Its parallel scale, on the same root, is the E flat major scale. Switching between them is a classic way to change colour without changing key.

About the natural minor scale

Darker, more melancholic and more introspective than the major scale, even though it shares its notes with its relative major. The minor third brings the sadness, the minor sixth adds a sombre, dramatic shade, and the minor seventh, a whole step below the root, removes the pull of a leading tone, so endings feel softer and more modal.

Rock ballads, metal, folk, film music and pop in minor keys. Play it over i iv v and over typical minor progressions such as i ♭VI ♭III ♭VII or i ♭VII ♭VI ♭VII. When a progression uses a major V chord (borrowed from harmonic minor), raise the 7th on that chord or switch to the harmonic minor scale for that bar.

It shares its notes with the relative major, so practise the switch: on guitar, play one position starting from the major root, then from the minor root, and hear how the centre moves. On piano, play the scale over a sustained i chord in the left hand, then over iv and v. End your phrases on the root, the ♭3 or the 5th.

Also called Aeolian, it is the 6th mode of the major scale. Step pattern W H W W H W W, formula 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7. Compared with the major scale on the same root, three notes are lowered: the 3rd, the 6th and the 7th. The natural minor scale and its relative major share a key signature (for example A minor and C major).

Related

• F sharp major scale
• E flat major scale
• E flat minor pentatonic scale
• E flat major pentatonic scale
• E flat blues scale
• E flat Dorian mode
• E flat Mixolydian mode
• E flat harmonic minor scale
• E♭m
• E♭sus2
• E♭sus4

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