Guitar scale · exotic
A Hungarian Major Scale
1 ♯2 3 ♯4 5 6 ♭7: a scale with a major 3rd, a raised 2nd and a raised 4th, so it has an augmented 2nd from the root up to the ♯2.
Tap any note to hear it.
A Hungarian Major Scale tab: all 5 positions
Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.
e|-----------------------------5-8-9-| B|-------------------------7-8-------| G|-----------------5-6-8-9-----------| D|-------------5-7-------------------| A|-------6-7-9-----------------------| E|-5-8-9-----------------------------|
e|-----------------------------------8-9-11-| B|------------------------------8-10--------| G|-----------------------8-9-11-------------| D|---------------7-10-11--------------------| A|--------7-9-10----------------------------| E|-8-9-11-----------------------------------|
e|----------------------------------------9-11-12-| B|----------------------------------10-13---------| G|--------------------------9-11-12---------------| D|-----------------10-11-13-----------------------| A|---------9-10-12--------------------------------| E|-9-11-12----------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------12-14-15-| B|----------------------------------13-14-16----------| G|----------------------------12-14-------------------| D|-------------------13-14-16-------------------------| A|----------12-15-16----------------------------------| E|-12-14-15-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------14-15-17-| B|-------------------------------------16-17----------| G|----------------------------14-17-18----------------| D|-------------------14-16-17-------------------------| A|----------15-16-18----------------------------------| E|-14-15-17-------------------------------------------|
How to play A Hungarian Major on guitar
Find the root first: A is at fret 5 on the low E string and fret 0 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every A on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (3, 5, ♭7), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.
Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 5–9. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | A |
| ♯2 | B# |
| 3 | C# |
| ♯4 | D# |
| 5 | E |
| 6 | F# |
| ♭7 | G |
Chords in A Hungarian Major
Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in A Hungarian Major; tap one to see its shapes.
| Degree | Chord | 7th chord | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | A | A7 | Tonic |
| ♯ii° | B#dim | B#dim7 | Supertonic |
| iii° | C#dim | — | Mediant |
| ♯iv° | D#dim | D#m7b5 | Subdominant |
| V | — | — | Dominant |
| vi | F#m | F#m7 | Submediant |
| ♭VII | — | — | Leading tone / subtonic |
Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android
Practise A Hungarian Major anywhere, even offline.
This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.
Free
- 65 scales and 56 chord types in every key, with CAGED shapes
- A tuner with 10 tunings and a metronome from 30 to 260 BPM
- A new Daily 15 routine every day, plus free exercises
- Maqam & makam between the frets, and the Name the Note quiz
One purchase
- 282 exercises that play as tab, and routines with a speed trainer
- Chord & Scale Finder: tap the neck, get the name
- Theory Lab and the Progression Builder with 51 genre loops
- No subscription, ads removed
Questions
- What notes are in the A Hungarian Major Scale?
- The A Hungarian Major Scale has 7 notes: A, B#, C#, D#, E, F#, G.
- What chords are in the A Hungarian Major Scale?
- The chords of A Hungarian Major are A (I), B#dim (♯ii°), C#dim (iii°), D#dim (♯iv°), F#m (vi).
- What is the formula of the hungarian major scale?
- 1 ♯2 3 ♯4 5 6 ♭7, which is the step pattern W+H H W H W H W (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play A Hungarian Major on the guitar?
- The root A is at fret 5 on the low E string and fret 0 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 5–9, and four more positions connect it up the neck.