STRINGSCALES

B♭ romani minor Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: E, F, Gb, Ab, Bb, C, Db, E at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12

A string: Bb, C, Db, E, F, Gb, Ab at frets 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 11

D string: E, F, Gb, Ab, Bb, C, Db at frets 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11

G string: Ab, Bb, C, Db, E, F, Gb at frets 1, 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11

B string: C, Db, E, F, Gb, Ab, Bb at frets 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11

High E string: E, F, Gb, Ab, Bb, C, Db, E at frets 0, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12

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Bb romani minor

The romani minor scale is natural minor with a raised 4th: root, 2nd, flat 3rd, sharp 4th, 5th, flat 6th, flat 7th. The #4 against the 5th delivers the wailing, dramatic color associated with Roma fiddle traditions, without harmonic minor's raised 7th. It is the fourth mode of the neapolitan minor scale, and a cousin of the hungarian minor scale.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

B♭

i

B♭m
C

II

Cmaj♭5
D♭

bIII

D♭maj
E

#IV

G♭7no5/E
F

v

Fm
G♭

bVI

G♭maj
A♭

bVII+

A♭aug

Same notes, different mode

Bb romani minor uses the same notes as the scales below. Start from a different note and you get a new mode built on the very same note set.

C locrian dominantDb ionian major #2E ultralocrianF neapolitan minorGb lydian #6Ab mixolydian augmented

romani minor in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Natural minor with a raised 4th: keep every aeolian habit and bend the 4th up a half step (E) whenever the line rises to the 5th.
  • Unlike hungarian minor it keeps the flat 7th (Ab), so it works over minor 7th chords without clashing.
  • Feature the #4 (E) against an open-string root drone for the wailing fiddle color the name points to.
  • It is the fourth mode of neapolitan minor; the same pitch set a 4th above Bb plays neapolitan minor phrases.

How to play B♭ romani minor on guitar

Both E strings are the only opens in this key, and each one is the augmented fourth, so the nut offers a tritone against the tonic and little else. Fret 1 on the A string is the nearest root, which means an A-shape barre sits almost at the nut even as the lowest root hides at fret 6 on the low E string. Capo 1 brings A romani minor fingerings across. Position work resumes at fret 10.

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