F harmonic minor scale
F harmonic minor scale is F – G – A♭ – B♭ – C – D♭ – E, with A♭, B♭ and D♭. Formula 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 7. Press play and follow the keys.
F harmonic minor scale, note by note
The step pattern is W H W W H W+H H (W = whole step, H = half step, W+H = a step and a half). The half steps fall between G–A♭, C–D♭ and E–F. The wide step is D♭–E.
| Degree | Note | Interval from F | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | F | root | |
| 2 | G | major second | |
| ♭3 | A♭ | minor third | |
| 4 | B♭ | perfect fourth | |
| 5 | C | perfect fifth | |
| ♭6 | D♭ | minor sixth | |
| 7 | E | major seventh |
What F harmonic minor sounds like
The raised 7th (E) is the whole point of harmonic minor: it lets F minor end songs with a strong major V chord pulling home. Played as a melody, that step-and-a-half jump is the sound people call "Middle Eastern" or "neoclassical".
Stack thirds on the 5th degree and you get C, a major chord in a minor key; C to Fm is the cadence this scale exists for. The 7th degree gives Edim, which pulls up to F the same way.
Compared with F natural minor scale, F harmonic minor scale has E where the other has E♭; the other six notes are shared. Hear F natural minor scale and compare.
Where your hands go
Keyboard players: three black (A♭, B♭ and D♭), four white.
The guitar box starts with the root at the 1st fret of the low E string and spans frets 0–5: 18 notes, low string to high.
Chords built on each note
Stack every other note of the scale on each degree and you get 7 chords. These are the chords that fit F harmonic minor scale; the ones that differ from the major set are what give the scale its color. Tap to hear each one.
Moving it around the guitar
Find F first: fret 1 and 13 of the 6th string, fret 8 of the 5th. Work up the neck in five positions (low E string frets 1, 3, 6, 8 and 10) and you'll have it everywhere. On guitar, the three-fret leap between the 6th and 7th notes is the stretch to practise on its own.
On the piano, F harmonic minor scale uses 3 black keys (A♭, B♭ and D♭) and 4 white.
Try it in thirds to stop it sounding like an exercise: F–A♭, G–B♭, A♭–C, B♭–D♭, C–E, D♭–F, E–G, then back down.
Three ways to practise F harmonic minor
Running a scale straight up and down only teaches the order. These patterns use the same 7 notes and train your ear and fingers to jump around inside F harmonic minor scale.
- Groups of three: F G A♭ · G A♭ B♭ · A♭ B♭ C · B♭ C D♭ · C D♭ E · D♭ E F.
- Lean on E: F E F E F: the raised 7th, a step and a half above the ♭6, gives the scale its exotic leap.
Try next, from F
Harmonic minor scale in every key
F harmonic minor scale: questions
What are the notes of the F harmonic minor scale?
7 notes: F, G, A♭, B♭, C, D♭ and E.
How many sharps or flats are in the F harmonic minor scale?
Three: A♭, B♭ and D♭.
What chords are in the F harmonic minor scale?
Stacking thirds on each note gives Fm (i), Gdim (ii°), A♭aug (III+), B♭m (iv), C (V), D♭ (VI) and Edim (vii°).
What's the difference between F harmonic minor scale and F natural minor scale?
E in F harmonic minor; E♭ in the other. Everything else is the same.
Every note on this page is computed from 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 7 and tested. Updated September 2026.