Guitar scale · Gypsy minor
A Hungarian Minor Scale
Featuring ♯4 and 7 degrees for the passionate, sharp sound of Gypsy/Hungarian folk music.
Tap any note to hear it.
A Hungarian Minor 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|-----------------------------5-7-8-| B|-------------------------6-9-------| G|-------------------5-8-9-----------| D|-------------6-7-9-----------------| A|-------6-7-8-----------------------| E|-5-7-8-----------------------------|
e|----------------------------------7-8-11-| B|-----------------------------9-10--------| G|----------------------8-9-10-------------| D|---------------7-9-10--------------------| A|--------7-8-11---------------------------| E|-7-8-11----------------------------------|
e|-----------------------------------------11-12-13-| B|--------------------------------10-12-13----------| G|------------------------9-10-13-------------------| D|----------------9-10-13---------------------------| A|----------11-12-----------------------------------| E|-11-12-13-----------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------12-13-16-| B|-------------------------------------13-16----------| G|----------------------------13-14-16----------------| D|-------------------13-14-15-------------------------| A|----------12-14-15----------------------------------| E|-12-13-16-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------16-17-| B|----------------------------------16-17-18-------| G|-------------------------14-16-17----------------| D|----------------14-15-18-------------------------| A|-------14-15-18----------------------------------| E|-16-17-------------------------------------------|
How to play A Hungarian Minor 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 Minor
Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in A Hungarian Minor; tap one to see its shapes.
| Degree | Chord | 7th chord | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| i | Am | Am(maj7) | Tonic |
| II | — | — | Supertonic |
| ♭III+ | Caug | Cmaj7#5 | Mediant |
| ♯IV | — | — | Subdominant |
| V | E | Emaj7 | Dominant |
| ♭VI | F | Fmaj7 | Submediant |
| vii | G#m | — | Leading tone / subtonic |
Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android
Practise A Hungarian Minor 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.
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- 65 scales and 56 chord types in every key, with CAGED shapes
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- 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
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Questions
- What notes are in the A Hungarian Minor Scale?
- The A Hungarian Minor Scale has 7 notes: A, B, C, D#, E, F, G#.
- What chords are in the A Hungarian Minor Scale?
- The chords of A Hungarian Minor are Am (i), Caug (♭III+), E (V), F (♭VI), G#m (vii).
- What is the formula of the hungarian minor scale?
- 1 2 ♭3 ♯4 5 ♭6 7, which is the step pattern W H W+H H H W+H H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play A Hungarian Minor 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.