The melodic minor scale is derived from minor scale. It also completes the trilogy of the most commonly used
scales in western music.
Learning proper finger positioning is not that easy. For beginners, you might find it very confusing. But
with certain amount of patience and practice, playing the melodic minor scale on
guitar will never be difficult.
To play the melodic minor scale, you should first place your left hand index finger on the fifth string of the
third fret. Then, pluck the string. Afterwards, place your left hand ring finger on the fifth string of the fifth
fret and play the string.
After that, place your left hand pinky finger on the fifth string of the fifth fret and play the string. Once
you’ve done that already, lay your left hand index finger on the fourth string of the third fret and pluck the
note.
Next, place your left hand ring finger on the fourth string of the fifth fret and play the note after. Then, lay
your left hand index finger on the third string of the second fret and pluck the string. Subsequently, position
your left hand ring finger on the third string of the fourth fret and play the note.
And lastly, lay your left hand pinky finger on the third string of the fifth fret and pluck the
strings. Practice all the eight notes to produce the C melodic minor scale on guitar.
Practice is important when playing this kind of scale, especially in different keys along the fifth
string. The first note of the scale is called the root and that will tell you what key you are in. If you play the
scale on the fifth string of the fifth fret, that is what we call the D melodic minor scale.
Always remember to keep your left hand thumb behind the neck of the guitar to make things easier when you play
the melodic minor scale on guitar.
At first, you might find this scale intimidating to play. But then again, practice is essential in learning guitar. It is normal to hit the wrong note and pluck the wrong
strings. But with your mistakes, do the right thing. Practice more often and know which one fits the scale.