Guitar scale · jazz minor
Bb Melodic Minor Scale
Natural minor with raised 6th and 7th degrees. Foundational to modern jazz and fusion.
Tap any note to hear it.
Bb Melodic 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|---------------------------------6-8-9-| B|----------------------------8-10-------| G|---------------------6-8-10------------| D|--------------7-8-10-------------------| A|-------6-8-10--------------------------| E|-6-8-9---------------------------------|
e|--------------------------------------8-9-11-| B|--------------------------------10-11--------| G|------------------------8-10-12--------------| D|----------------8-10-11----------------------| A|--------8-10-12------------------------------| E|-8-9-11--------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------11-13-| B|----------------------------------11-13-14-------| G|-------------------------10-12-14----------------| D|----------------10-11-13-------------------------| A|-------10-12-13----------------------------------| E|-11-13-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------13-15-17-| B|-------------------------------------14-16----------| G|----------------------------14-15-17----------------| D|-------------------13-15-17-------------------------| A|----------13-15-16----------------------------------| E|-13-15-17-------------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------15-17-18-| B|-------------------------------------16-18----------| G|----------------------------15-17-18----------------| D|-------------------15-17-19-------------------------| A|----------15-16-18----------------------------------| E|-15-17-18-------------------------------------------|
How to play Bb Melodic Minor on guitar
Find the root first: Bb is at fret 6 on the low E string and fret 1 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every Bb 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 6–10. 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 | Bb |
| 2 | C |
| ♭3 | Db |
| 4 | Eb |
| 5 | F |
| 6 | G |
| 7 | A |
Chords in Bb Melodic Minor
Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in Bb Melodic Minor; tap one to see its shapes.
| Degree | Chord | 7th chord | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| i | Bbm | Bbm(maj7) | Tonic |
| ii | Cm | Cm7 | Supertonic |
| ♭III+ | Dbaug | Dbmaj7#5 | Mediant |
| IV | Eb | Eb7 | Subdominant |
| V | F | F7 | Dominant |
| vi° | Gdim | Gm7b5 | Submediant |
| vii° | Adim | Am7b5 | Leading tone / subtonic |
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Practise Bb Melodic Minor anywhere, even offline.
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Questions
- What notes are in the Bb Melodic Minor Scale?
- The Bb Melodic Minor Scale has 7 notes: Bb, C, Db, Eb, F, G, A.
- What chords are in the Bb Melodic Minor Scale?
- The chords of Bb Melodic Minor are Bbm (i), Cm (ii), Dbaug (♭III+), Eb (IV), F (V), Gdim (vi°), Adim (vii°).
- What is the formula of the melodic minor scale?
- 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7, which is the step pattern W H W W W W H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play Bb Melodic Minor on the guitar?
- The root Bb is at fret 6 on the low E string and fret 1 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 6–10, and four more positions connect it up the neck.