F melodic minor scale
F melodic minor scale is F – G – A♭ – B♭ – C – D – E, with A♭ and B♭. Formula 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7. Press play and follow the keys.
The notes, one step at a time
Counted in steps it goes W H W W W W H (W = whole step, H = half step). The half steps fall between G–A♭ and E–F.
| 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 | major sixth | |
| 7 | E | major seventh |
What F melodic minor sounds like
Its top half is the same as F major and its bottom half is minor, which gives it a dark start and a bright finish; jazz uses it for altered and lydian-dominant sounds.
Coming down, classical players switch to the natural form: F – E♭ – D♭ – C – B♭ – A♭ – G – F. Jazz keeps D and E both ways.
Compared with F natural minor scale, F melodic minor scale has D and E where the other has D♭ and E♭; the other five notes are shared. Hear F natural minor scale and compare.
Playing F melodic minor
Keyboard players: two black (A♭ and B♭), five 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 melodic minor scale; the ones that differ from the major set are what give the scale its color. Tap to hear each one.
F melodic minor scale across the fretboard
The root, F, sits at frets 1 and 13 on the low E string and 8 on the A string. Work up the neck in five positions (low E string frets 1, 3, 6, 8 and 10) and you'll have it everywhere. Classical teaching plays it with the raised notes going up and natural minor coming down; jazz players keep it the same both ways.
On the piano, F melodic minor scale uses 2 black keys (A♭ and B♭) and 5 white.
A good drill once the scale is under your fingers: play it in thirds, skipping one note each time. Here that's F–A♭, G–B♭, A♭–C, B♭–D, C–E, D–F, E–G.
Drills for F melodic minor
Try these after the plain scale. Tap to hear each pattern at a steady speed, then play along.
- Up in threes: F G A♭ · G A♭ B♭ · A♭ B♭ C · B♭ C D · C D E · D E F.
- Lean on D: F D F D F: the raised 6th and 7th make the top half sound major.
Scales to compare with F melodic minor
Melodic minor scale in every key
F melodic minor scale: questions
What are the notes of the F melodic minor scale?
7 notes: F, G, A♭, B♭, C, D and E.
How many sharps or flats are in the F melodic minor scale?
Two: A♭ and B♭.
What chords are in the F melodic minor scale?
Stacking thirds on each note gives Fm (i), Gm (ii), A♭aug (III+), B♭ (IV), C (V), Ddim (vi°) and Edim (vii°).
What's the difference between F melodic minor scale and F natural minor scale?
D and E in F melodic minor; D♭ and E♭ in the other. Everything else is the same.
Notes and fingering generated from the scale formula and checked automatically against the step pattern. Updated September 2026.