11 Practice Tips + Bonus Planner (Free PDF)

11 Practice Tips + Bonus Planner (Free PDF)

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Alright, no time to waste!

Here, we’ll take you through all 12 major piano scales, natural minor piano scales, harmonic minor piano scales, and melodic minor piano scales.

Overview

Major Piano Scales
Natural Minor Piano Scales
Harmonic Minor Piano Scales
Melodic Minor Piano Scales

Alright, let’s jump into it!

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Major Scales - Both Hands

Our first scale category is the major scale, which is typically the first scale pianists learn when they’re starting off.

C Major Piano Scale

C Major Piano Scale

G Major Piano Scale

D Major Piano Scale

A Major Piano Scale

A Major Piano Scale

E Major Piano Scale

E Major Piano Scale

B Major Piano Scale

B Major Piano Scale

F# Major/Gb Major Piano Scale

F# major and Gb major are “enharmonic” spellings of each other. This means that while both scales look completely different, they actually sound, and play, the exact same.

F# Major Piano Scale
Gb Major Piano Scale

Db Major Piano Scale

Db Major Piano Scale

Ab Major Piano Scale

Ab Major Piano Scale

Eb Major Piano Scale

Eb Major Piano Scale

Bb Major Piano Scale

Bb Major Piano Scale

F Major Piano Scale

F Major Piano Scale

Natural Minor (Aeolian) Scales - Both Hands

Next we have our natural minor piano scales. 

These tend to sound much darker than our major scales from earlier, and you might notice that these scales are basically just major scales starting on the third to last note.

C Minor Piano Scale

C Minor Piano Scale

G Minor Piano Scale

G Minor Piano Scale

D Minor Piano Scale

A Minor Piano Scale

A Minor Piano Scale

E Minor Piano Scale

E Minor Piano Scale

B Minor Piano Scale

B Minor Piano Scale

F# Minor Piano Scale

F# Minor Piano Scale

C# Minor Piano Scale

C# Minor Piano Scale

G# Minor Piano Scale

G# Minor Piano Scale

D#/Eb Minor Piano Scale

Remember our comment from the F#/Gb major scale? 

Same applies here. D# minor and Eb minor are enharmonic spellings of each other, which means they have exactly the same notes.

D#Minor Piano Scale
Eb Minor Piano Scale

Bb Minor Piano Scale

Bb Minor Piano Scale

F Minor Piano Scale

F Minor Piano Scale

Harmonic Minor Scales - Both Hands

Now we have the harmonic minor scales. These are defined by that raised 7th near the top of the scale.

It’s still a minor scale, but that raised 7th gives it a nice sense of resolution as you approach the top of the scale.

It’s also worth mentioning that whenever a piece is said to be in a minor key, that minor key is actually referring to harmonic minor, rather than melodic or natural.

C Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

C Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

G Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

G Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

D Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

D Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

A Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

A Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

E Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

E Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

B Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

B Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

F# Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

F# Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

C# Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

C# Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

G# Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

G# Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

D#/Eb Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

D# Harmonic Minor Piano Scale
Eb Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

Bb Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

Bb Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

F Harmonic Minor Piano Scale

Melodic Minor Scales - Both Hands

Our last category is the melodic minor scale.

This scale is defined as a minor scale with a raised 6th and 7th on the way up, and a natural minor scale on the way down. 

Composers use this scale to add color to their melodic lines, often switching between the two orientations to achieve their desired tone.

C Melodic Minor Piano Scale

G Melodic Minor Piano Scale

D Melodic Minor Piano Scale

D Melodic Minor Piano Scale

A Melodic Minor Piano Scale

E Melodic Minor Piano Scale

B Melodic Minor Piano Scale

F# Melodic Minor Piano Scale

C# Melodic Minor Piano Scale

G# Melodic Minor Piano Scale

D#/Eb Melodic Minor Piano Scale

D# Melodic Minor Piano Scale
Eb Melodic Minor Piano Scale

Bb Melodic Minor Piano Scale

Bb Melodic Minor Piano Scale

F Melodic Minor Piano Scale

F Melodic Minor Piano Scale

Want all of these scales on one organized practice PDF?

We've got you covered.

Click here to access this PDF completely for free :)

Conclusion

And there you go, that’s all of the must know piano scales to get you going on your piano journey! 

With all of the major, natural minor, harmonic minor and melodic minor scales in your back pocket, you should be ready to tackle all sorts of piano repertoire.

However, sometimes it can be daunting to learn all of these scales without any sort of guidance.

On tonebase, you can browse lessons with Grammy winning pianists and high level conservatory instructors on subjects such as piano scale fingerings and technique.

And if this post helped you, we’d love to know!

Shoot us a dm on Instagram @tonebasepiano :)

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