Aeolian (Natural Minor)

The notes

B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭, then B♭. Five flats, shared with D♭ major, its relative. Only B♭, C and F are natural.

The G♭ is the sixth degree, and its closeness to the F below gives the natural minor here its particular weight. Raise the A♭ to A natural for the harmonic minor, and the resulting gap between G♭ and A is the interval that carries most of the drama.

Its parallel major, B♭, is a common horn key, which produces a curious asymmetry: the major is everywhere in jazz and the minor is rare, though both are equally hard on guitar.

On the fretboard

Sixth fret with the root on the low E string, or first fret with the root on the A. The sixth-fret position is standard, and the first is used mainly when the low B♭ is needed.

A capo at the first fret with A minor shapes reproduces the key exactly and is what most recordings actually use. There is no shame in it: the notes are identical and the resonance is better.

Where it is used

Orchestral and film music, jazz ballads, and pop that was transposed to fit a voice. Its relative major, D♭, is equally common in those settings.

On guitar the key almost never originates — it arrives. Recognising that saves time: the right response is usually a capo rather than a month of practice.