B Melodic minorScale

Formula

W H W W W W H 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7
The family

B Melodic minor on the chromatic circle

B Melodic minor is the 1st mode of the Melodic minor family. Pick another note on the circle to open the scale that starts there.

W H W W W W H 1 BI Melodic minor 2 C♯II Dorian ♭2 ♭3 DIII Lydian augmented 4 EIV Lydian dominant 5 F♯V Mixolydian ♭6 6 G♯VI Locrian ♮2 7 A♯VII Altered B Melodic minor
The whole neck

B Melodic minor across the fretboard

Every note of the scale up to the 16th fret, named by its degree. The root is a ring. Step through the five CAGED positions one at a time in the scale library.

3 5 7 9 12 15 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 1 2 ♭3 4 5
Harmony

Chords in B Melodic minor

Stack every other note of the scale from each degree and you get its chords. Open any of them in the chord library.

DegreeChordNotes
iBm(maj7)B D F♯ A♯
iiC♯m7C♯ E G♯ B
♭III+Dmaj7♯5D F♯ A♯ C♯
IVE7E G♯ B D
VF♯7F♯ A♯ C♯ E
vi°G♯m7♭5G♯ B D F♯
vii°A♯m7♭5A♯ C♯ E G♯
Context

Where B Melodic minor fits

Jazz minor: over minor-major 7 and minor 6 chords, the tonic of a minor key in jazz. Its modes give jazz most of its altered sounds.

B Melodic minor is mode 1 of the melodic minor family. The same notes played from each of its other degrees give the family's other modes:

Move one note by a half step and you get a different scale:

Melodic minor scale in every key

B Melodic minor scale questions

What notes are in the B Melodic minor scale?

B C♯ D E F♯ G♯ A♯. As degrees from the root: 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7.

What is the B Melodic minor scale formula?

1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7, or in steps between the notes, W H W W W W H (W is a whole step of two frets, H a half step of one fret, 1½ three frets).

How do you play the B Melodic minor scale on guitar?

This page draws every note of B Melodic minor up to the 16th fret, each named by its degree with the root as a ring. To learn it a few frets at a time, open it in the scale library and step through its five CAGED positions, from the A shape to the G shape to the E shape to the D shape to the C shape.

What chords are in the B Melodic minor scale?

Bm(maj7) (i), C♯m7 (ii), Dmaj7♯5 (♭III+), E7 (IV), F♯7 (V), G♯m7♭5 (vi°), A♯m7♭5 (vii°).

When is the B Melodic minor scale used?

Jazz minor: over minor-major 7 and minor 6 chords, the tonic of a minor key in jazz. Its modes give jazz most of its altered sounds.