Minor Blues Scale: Theory & Ear Training

The Minor Blues Scale is the blues scale that most people are familiar with, so much so that it usually just called the Blues Scale…

The Minor Blues Scale has only six notes and is yet another existence proof that scales are not made up of “half steps” and “whole steps”.

C Minor Blues Scale Theory…

piano-ology-scales-c-minor-blues-keyboard-layout-descending

The scale structure of the Minor Blues Scale is always 1-b3-4-#4/b5-5-6-b7-1, no matter what key you are in.
The Solfege syllables of the Minor Blues Scale are always Do-Me-Fi/Se-So-Le-Do, no matter what key you are in.
The only thing that changes when you change keys are the letter names.

Play and sing the Minor Blues Scale with special attention to the three blue notes: Me, Fi/Se, and Te. Notice the bluesy quality these special notes bring to the musical table. “Bluesy” cannot be described with mere words, but you sure know it when you hear it!

Special Note about Names: Don’t fuss over whether F#/Fi/Fa sharp should be called Gb/Se/So flat or vice versa. These are all just arbitrary names that you will eventually discard like training wheels. At the end of the day, the sound and physical mapping on your instrument are all that really matter!

Comparative Scale Study

Notice that the Minor Blues Scale uses all five notes from the Minor Pentatonic Scale, but adds an extra blue note Fi/Se. Don’t try to “memorize” this fact, but do realize how much certain scale types have in common and how learning one kind of scale helps you to learn others.

Solfege Ear Training

Reading, playing, and singing the Solfege Syllables out loud is an extremely effective way to tune up your ears and to internalize the unique sound-feeling of each note in the scale with respect to the key center Do. Make sure to do this slowly enough for the unique sound-feeling of each Solfege Syllable to make a meaningful impression on your mind’s ear.

C Minor Blues Scale: Linear, Ascending…

piano-ology-scales-c-minor-blues-solfege-ear-training-linear-ascending

C Minor Blues Scale: Linear, Descending…

piano-ology-scales-c-minor-blues-solfege-ear-training-linear-descending

C Minor Blues Scale: Do-X-Do, Ascending…

piano-ology-scales-c-minor-blues-solfege-ear-training-do-x-do-ascending

C Minor Blues Scale: Do-X-Do, Descending…

piano-ology-scales-c-minor-blues-solfege-ear-training-do-x-do-descending

Note: While it’s possible to continue by singing a bunch of other musical patterns, the 80-20 Principle teaches us that a more efficient approach is to get your ear training material directly from the music that YOU want to play!

learn more… Major Blues Scale: Theory & Ear Training

5Comments

Add yours

1

Alex on 2021-03-24 at 08:24

I am not sure, but if you talk about minor scale you should start your solfeggio with la. C = La not Do
This is how it works in classical I don’t think is different in blues.
A.
- 2
  
  Frank J Peter on 2021-12-21 at 08:22
  
  Thanks for asking, Alex. Alas, this is a case where music theory and ear training are horribly, confusingly taught–rendering trusting students to become trapped in their analytical heads and rendered deaf to the music they are playing. The bottom line is this: “Do” is the key you are in, always. And so, in this lesson, C is “Do”, not Eb. Don’t just trust me on this. Sing along and ask yourself: Which note sounds/feels stable and resolved and like home base. That’s “Do”! BTW, call C anything you like… One, Fred, Ethel, Blue, Green… the point is that C, in this case, is the key center… a key center that must be understood as such by intellect AND by ear! Cheers!
3

vcolborn52 on 2021-12-18 at 09:34

Alex, Yes, it is my understanding that in classical training a fixed Do is taught. Here in the US (at least) a moving Do is more commonly taught. Apparently you are interpreting the Cm Blues scale as based on Eb Major. I would concur with you.
- 4
  
  Frank J Peter on 2021-12-21 at 08:31
  
  Alas, this is a case where music theory and ear training are horribly, confusingly taught… rendering trusting students to become trapped in their analytical heads and rendered deaf to the music they are playing. The bottom line is this: “Do” is the key you are in, always. And so, in this lesson, C is “Do”, not Eb. Don’t just trust me on this. Sing along and ask yourself: Which note sounds/feels stable and resolved and like home base. That’s “Do”! BTW, call C anything you like… One, Fred, Ethel, Blue, Green… the point is that C, in this case, is the key center… a key center that must be understood as such by intellect AND by ear! Cheers!
- 5
  
  Frank J Peter on 2022-10-31 at 14:06
  
  In the “fixed Do” system, C is always Do and A is always La–no matter what key you are in. This, of course, makes zero FUNCTIONAL sense as it is not how humans perceive music–namely, in RELATIVE terms. Not only that, but it’s quite a silly thing to just add more arbitrary names that have no inherent meaning and contribute nothing to aural comprehension.