F Minor scale
F Minor scale for guitar.
The F Minor is a seven-note scale, also called Natural F Minor. Colored circles mark the tones in the diagram, with darker color highlighting the root notes. The root notes are always F tones. In the two-octave pattern, the first root note is on the 6th string, 1st fret.
F Minor 2 octaves

F Minor full fretboard

F Minor with note names

The scale displayed with its numeric formula, intervals and scale degrees.
Formula | Notes | Intervals | Degrees |
---|---|---|---|
1 | F | Unison | Tonic |
2 | G | Major second | Supertonic |
b3 | Ab | Minor third | Mediant |
4 | Bb | Perfect fourth | Subdominant |
5 | C | Perfect fifth | Dominant |
b6 | Db | Minor sixth | Submediant |
b7 | Eb | Minor seventh | Subtonic |
The F Minor scale consists of seven notes. These can be described as intervals, as semi-notes or steps on the guitar fingerboard, written as 2 - 1 - 2 - 2 - 1 - 2 - 2 from the first note to the next octave.
The F Minor is relative to Ab Major. Both scales include the same notes but their tonal center differ.
The F Minor is identical with the F Aeolian mode.
Beneficial to learn this scale is to observe the note steps starting from the root: whole, half, whole, whole, half, whole, whole. The same formula applies for the whole neck.
These are chords built from the notes of this scale:
Fm, Fm7, Fm9, Fm11 |
Gdim, Gm7b5 |
Ab, Abmaj7, Ab6, Ab6/9, Abmaj9, Abmaj13 |
Bbm, Bbm7, Bbm6, Bbm9, Bbm11, Bbm13 |
Cm, Cm7 |
Db, Dbmaj7, Db6, Db6/9, Dbmaj9 |
Eb, Eb7, Eb6, Eb9, Eb11, Eb13 |
The tones in these chords correspond to the tones of the F Minor scale.
Start the audio and play along! Use notes from the scale in the diagram above.
Normal tempo: