STRINGSCALES

C hungarian minor Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: F#, G, Ab, B, C, D, Eb at frets 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11

A string: B, C, D, Eb, F#, G, Ab at frets 2, 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11

D string: D, Eb, F#, G, Ab, B, C, D at frets 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 12

G string: G, Ab, B, C, D, Eb, F#, G at frets 0, 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12

B string: B, C, D, Eb, F#, G, Ab, B at frets 0, 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 12

High E string: F#, G, Ab, B, C, D, Eb at frets 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11

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C hungarian minor

The hungarian minor scale is harmonic minor with a raised 4th: two augmented 2nd leaps, one on each side of the 5th. This is the full gypsy-scale drama of Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies and Eastern European violin music, and a secret weapon in neoclassical metal. The #4 to 5 and 7 to root resolutions give it two built-in climaxes per octave.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

C

i

Cm
D

II

Dmaj♭5
E♭

bIII+

E♭aug
F♯

#IV

A♭7no5/F#
G

V

Gmaj
A♭

bVI

A♭maj
B

vii

Bm

Same notes, different mode

C hungarian 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.

D orientalG double harmonic major

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

tip
  • Two augmented 2nds flank the 5th: practice bIII (Eb) to #IV (F#) and bVI (Ab) to VII as deliberate leaps with a slide or bend.
  • Resolve #IV (F#) up to V and VII up to C; the scale has two built-in climaxes per octave, so phrase toward them.
  • Over a minor chord vamp on C, alternate harmonic minor and hungarian minor: only the 4th changes, and the #4 (F#) doubles the drama.
  • For neoclassical metal, sequence the upper tetrachord (V, bVI (Ab), VII, root); it carries the entire gypsy-scale character.

How to play C hungarian minor on guitar

Open G is the fifth and open D the second, so both hold under a fretted line without any extra fingers. Lowest root is fret 8 at the bottom, matched by an E-shape barre in the same spot. Two flats in the signature. AbM sits on the flat sixth degree, which lets you pull a major triad out of a minor tonality, and box one ends at fret 12.

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