JamEaseGuitar scales › Harmonic Minor Scale
B♭ Harmonic Minor Scale – Guitar
A natural minor scale with a raised 7th: the neoclassical, exotic sound of Malmsteen and Gypsy jazz. Here it is in B♭: the notes, the whole neck, all five boxes with TAB, and a backing track to practise over.
Notes in the B♭ harmonic minor scale
- B♭1
- C2
- D♭b3
- E♭4
- F5
- G♭b6
- A7
Formula: 1 – 2 – b3 – 4 – 5 – b6 – 7. Use it to solo over songs in B♭ minor, and over B♭ blues and rock progressions.
B♭ harmonic minor scale on the whole neck
Know the scale?
Now solo with it.
A guitar soloing course: 81 short lessons, each one ends with you jamming over a real backing track.
- From 3 notes to your own solos
- Every note on the neck, with sound and TAB
- 379 backing tracks in every key
The 5 boxes (positions) with TAB
Each box is one hand position. Learn Box 1 first: play it up with the TAB, then back down, then move to the next box – together they cover the whole neck.
Box 1 · frets 5–10
e|----------------------------------------------------5--6--8--9--| B|-------------------------------------------6--7--10-------------| G|-------------------------------5--6--8--10----------------------| D|----------------------7--8--10----------------------------------| A|-------------6--8--9--------------------------------------------| E|-5--6--8--9-----------------------------------------------------|
Box 2 · frets 7–12
e|-------------------------------------------------8--9--11-| B|----------------------------------------7--10-11----------| G|-------------------------------8--10-11-------------------| D|-------------------7--8--10-11----------------------------| A|----------8--9--12----------------------------------------| E|-8--9--11-------------------------------------------------|
Box 3 · frets 9–15
e|-------------------------------------------------------------9--11-13-14-| B|-------------------------------------------------10-11-13-14-------------| G|-------------------------------------10-11-14-15-------------------------| D|-------------------------10-11-13-15-------------------------------------| A|-------------9--12-13-15-------------------------------------------------| E|-9--11-13-14-------------------------------------------------------------|
Box 4 · frets 1–5
e|-------------------------------1-2-5-| B|-------------------------1-2-4-------| G|-------------------2-3-5-------------| D|-------------1-3-4-------------------| A|-------1-3-4-------------------------| E|-1-2-5-------------------------------|
Box 5 · frets 2–7
e|-----------------------------------2-5-6-| B|---------------------------2-4-6-7-------| G|-------------------2-3-5-6---------------| D|-------------3-4-7-----------------------| A|-------3-4-6-----------------------------| E|-2-5-6-----------------------------------|
B♭ minor backing track
Play the boxes over this, starting and ending phrases on the gold root notes.
Minor Blues backing Track in A# Minor | Soul Blues – Fret Junkies
Songs in B♭ minor
These songs are in B♭ minor, so this is a scale that fits for soloing over them:
- Riptide – Vance Joy
- I See Fire – Ed Sheeran
- Stitches – Shawn Mendes
- Little Talks – Of Monsters and Men
- Let It Go – James Bay
- Rude – MAGIC!
- Chandelier – Sia
- Sparks – Coldplay
- Treat You Better – Shawn Mendes
- Give Me Love – Ed Sheeran
- Believer – Imagine Dragons
- Broken Strings – James Morrison
Other scales in B♭
- B♭ Minor Pentatonic Scale
- B♭ Major Pentatonic Scale
- B♭ Blues Scale
- B♭ Major Blues Scale
- B♭ Major Scale
- B♭ Natural Minor Scale
- B♭ Dorian Mode
- B♭ Mixolydian Mode
- B♭ Phrygian Mode
- B♭ Lydian Mode
- B♭ Melodic Minor Scale
Harmonic Minor Scale in other keys
- C Harmonic Minor Scale
- C♯ Harmonic Minor Scale
- D Harmonic Minor Scale
- E♭ Harmonic Minor Scale
- E Harmonic Minor Scale
- F Harmonic Minor Scale
- F♯ Harmonic Minor Scale
- G Harmonic Minor Scale
- G♯ Harmonic Minor Scale
- A Harmonic Minor Scale
- B Harmonic Minor Scale
Put it to use: solo with it, step by step, starting with three notes.
FAQ
What notes are in the Bb harmonic minor scale?
Bb, C, Db, Eb, F, Gb, A. The formula is 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 7.
Where do I start playing the Bb harmonic minor scale on guitar?
Start with Box 1, frets 5–10. The root note Bb is on the low E string at fret 6.