There are two kinds of minor scale - minor "harmonic" and minor "melodic". For Grade Two Music Theory, you can write whichever you prefer, but you must know which is which!
We think it's a good idea to learn about both kinds while you're studying, but to use the "harmonic" scale in the exam, because it's less complicated. So let's find out what the difference is!
Let's start by building a scale of A minor harmonic ascending (going up):
And now let's look at A minor harmonic descending (going down):
As you can see, it's exactly the same notes, but in reverse order.
Let's look at the two other minor scales you need to know for Grade Two Theory, E minor and D minor.
Play them slowly on a piano, if you have one, and look carefully at how many semitones there are between each note.
Minor Melodic Scales
Melodic minor scales are a bit more complicated, because they have one pattern on the way up, but another on the way down.
On the way up (ascending), the pattern is:
T - S - T - T- T - T - S
but on the way down the pattern is:
T - T - S - T - T - S - T
As you can see, the descending scale is not just a back-to-front ascending scale, (as it was in the harmonic scale). The top end of the melodic scale uses a completely different pattern. The very top note will always be the tonic (keynote) of the scale, but the two notes just below it are the ones which change, depending on which direction you're going in.
Here's A minor melodic, ascending and descending. Click the play button and concentrate on the notes in red- they're the ones which change on the way down.
Let's see how E minor melodic and D minor melodic look:
Just in case you were wondering, the words "harmonic" and "melodic" can be used to describe intervals as well as scales- but when we use them to talk about intervals they have a different meaning. You'll learn about harmonic and melodic intervals in Lesson 14 - Intervals.
It's correct to say "melodic minor scale" and "minor melodic scale". It doesn't matter which way round! The same goes for harmonic scales.
