this video is the first in a series of videos explaining how to calculate minor scales these are the different types of minor scales which I'll be tackling natural minor harmonic minor and melodic minor this video part one focuses on the natural minor scale now please don't switch off yet if you're only interested in learning about harmonic and melodic versions of the minor scale the natural minor scale is an essential First Step you need to learn before you can Master harmonic and melodic scales by learning about natural minor scales you're only a very small step away from understanding the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale therefore please persevere with natural miners before jumping ahead onto Parts two and three there are various ways to calculate scales and the method which I found most successful with my students is by using the circle of fifths therefore it's essential that you understand how to create and how to use the circle of fifths before watching this video if you need to have a look at my video creating the circle of fifths or if you know how to create the circle of fifths have a look at this more advanced video using the circle of fifths to calculate minor key signatures okay let's start with a fairly straightforward example e natural minor ascending as with my other videos at the bottom of this screen I'll be listing each of the steps we take to create each of the minor scales this is where I'll detail the steps to take for natural miners the other empty spaces will be filled as we explore each of the other different types of minor scales step one calculate the key signature to do this we use the circular of fifths and you should be familiar with this site with minor scales we always start at a over here on the right and count around until we get to the e that's E from E minor here is the E it is one notch away from a on the sharp side of the clock therefore we know that E minor has a key signature with one sharp over in the bottom left hand corner is our order of Sharps we take just the first letter from this order only one letter because we've calculated our key signature to have just one sharp in it it's an F so our key signature for E minor will have an F in it let's pop that key signature onto a Stave Step One is now complete this is step two right in the notes writing the notes from e e because we're dealing with E minor if we were dealing with B minor we'd start on a b c minor would' start on a c and so on all the way up to the next e remember we've been asked to create an ascending scale hence why we're going up it's extremely important that you check to ensure that you've put a note on every line and in every space more of this in part three of this series of videos that's it with step two completed you've now written a natural minor scale it's as simple as that if you've watched my video on major scales you'll recognize that this is the same method as calculating major scales let's try just one final natural minor example C natural minor ascending and descending step one calculate the key signature here's our circular fifths find the C here it is right at the top we start at a and count around to c 1 2 three therefore as C is three notches away from a and on the flat side of the clock C minor has three Flats in its key signature let's look at our order of flats we take the first three letters b e and a they become B flat E flat and a flat let's pop that key signature onto our Stave Step One is now complete step two right in the notes we start on c as this is C minor and ensuring that we put a note in every space and on every line we draw the notes up to the next C this is the ascending scale but looking at the question we've also been asked to write the descending version as well now I've written my ascending and descending scales in different bars purely to save space you could write it on one line if you prefer so making sure we include the key signature here's the starting C and ensuring that there is a note on every line in every space all the way down to the next C that's it steps one and two complete this is C natural minor ascending and descending hopefully you're now feeling confident in how to calculate natural minor scales all you need to remember is to calculate the key signature and then ensure that there is a note on every line and space as per mind instructions at the bottom of this screen as I said earlier natural miners are an essential step in being able to calculate melodic and harmonic scales so if you're feeling confident in being able to calculate natural minors you are very close in mastering the other forms of the minor scale now before we go just one word of warning before we finish to any student studying Theory with the associated board or abrsm as it is known at the time of this video's release which is January February 2011 the natural minor is not an acceptable answer in Associated board music theory exams in other words if in an exam you are asked to identify a minor scale the answer will either be melodic minor or harmonic minor never natural minor or the exam may ask you to write a minor scale and then detail which version you have written you must write your answer as melodic or harmonic there are rumors that the associated board may be changing their exams to include natural minors but regardless of its usage in exams it is still essential to understand natural minors to enable you to comprehend melodic and harmonic miners many thanks for watching this video please do watch part two where I'll be explaining how to calculate harmonic minor scales