E melodic minor scale

3 sharps: F♯ C♯ D♯ · pattern W–H–W–W–W–W–H

E – F♯ – G – A – B – C♯ – D♯

Step patternWHWWWWH

Chords in E melodic minor

iEm

iiF♯m

III+Gaug

IVA

vi°C♯dim

vii°D♯dim

Scale degrees

Degree	Note	Name	Half steps from E
1	E	Tonic	0
2	F♯	Supertonic	2
3	G	Mediant	3
4	A	Subdominant	5
5	B	Dominant	7
6	C♯	Submediant	9
7	D♯	Leading tone	11

About this scale

Melodic minor raises the 6th and 7th (C♯ and D♯) to smooth out the leap in harmonic minor. Classical players use it ascending and return to natural minor descending; in jazz it’s used both ways and is the source of many modern chord colours.

Seventh chords in E melodic minor scale

i(maj7) Em(maj7)ii7 F♯m7III+7 Gmaj7♯5IV7 A7V7 B7viø7 C♯m7♭5viiø7 D♯m7♭5

Other E scales

E major E natural minor E harmonic minor E major pentatonic E minor pentatonic E blues E Dorian E Mixolydian

Melodic minor scale in other keys

C C♯D E♭F F♯G A♭A B♭B

Questions

What are the notes of the E melodic minor scale?

E, F♯, G, A, B, C♯, D♯, and back to E.

How many sharps or flats are in E melodic minor scale?

3: F♯, C♯, D♯.

What is the step pattern of the melodic minor scale?

W–H–W–W–W–W–H, where W is a whole step (two keys) and H is a half step (the next key). Start that pattern on E to get this scale.