Aeolian (natural minor) · F · Guitar
The F Aeolian scale is F G A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ — formula 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7, step pattern W–H–W–W–H–W–W. Use it over Fm7: it is the scale for the tonic minor chord (i7) and vi chords; the natural-minor sound. Below, every note is marked on the fretboard in standard tuning; press play to hear it on a synthesized guitar while each note lights up, or tap any fret to sound that note.
Visualizer
Guitar · standard tuning
Piano
Tap any note on the diagram to hear it. Play loops the scale up and down one octave in eighth notes (switch Loop off for a single pass) in the position starting at fret 1. “Show” switches or combines the fretboard and keyboard; “Sound” picks the instrument you hear. Audio is synthesized in the browser.
Reference
| Degree | Note | Interval from F | Step to next |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | F | unison (0 semitones) | W |
| 2 | G | major 2nd (2 semitones) | H |
| ♭3 | A♭ | minor 3rd (3 semitones) | W |
| 4 | B♭ | perfect 4th (5 semitones) | W |
| 5 | C | perfect 5th (7 semitones) | H |
| ♭6 | D♭ | minor 6th (8 semitones) | W |
| ♭7 | E♭ | minor 7th (10 semitones) | W |
Chord it implies: Fm7 (F – A♭ – C – E♭). Use it for: the tonic minor chord (i7) and vi chords; the natural-minor sound.
Common questions
F G A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭. As scale degrees: 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7. It has 7 notes.
F Aeolian fits Fm7 and, more generally, the tonic minor chord (i7) and vi chords; the natural-minor sound.
1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 — the step pattern from the root is W H W W H W W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Start on the root F on the low E string at fret 1, and play the one-octave position shown: E-string fret 1, E-string fret 3, E-string fret 4, A-string fret 1, A-string fret 3, A-string fret 4, D-string fret 1, D-string fret 3. Every F on the neck is a root, so the same shape works in every position where the notes are marked.
Keep going
Same scale on piano · all Aeolian pages: Aeolian (natural minor) hub · practise it in context: ii–V–I trainer · theory: chord-scale theory.
Other scales from F