Scales › Hungarian minor

Hungarian minor scale

Hungarian minor, double augmented second

What color?

The Hungarian minor: b3, #11, b13 and major seventh, with two augmented seconds that signal its gypsy, dramatic color. You go for it for a very theatrical minor, even more exotic than harmonic minor.

Origin & history

The fourth mode of the double harmonic, the "Hungarian minor" or "minor Gypsy" scale, recognizable by its two augmented seconds. An emblematic color of Hungarian and Romani music, evoked by the Romantic composers.

Listen

• Hungarian Dances — Johannes Brahms
• Hungarian Rhapsodies — Franz Liszt

Which chords to play it on?

Outside the functional consensus: this is an exploration color. Lay it over a vamp or a held chord to tint your improvisation with an unexpected flavor, rather than inside a cadence.

Sibling modes

The Hungarian minor scale is one of the modes of the double harmonic scale : it shares exactly the same notes as the modes below, but built on a different degree of the parent scale (double harmonic major (Byzantine)).

Try it in a real chart

Paste a chord chart into the tool: Pentania tells you, chord by chord, when this scale fits — and what other colors are open to you. Open the tool →