Barry HarrisThe method
Volume I · Foundations Stage 4, running scales over tunes Idea 3 of 41234
4.3

MinorHarmonic minor and the minor 6th sound (Barry avoided melodic-minor outlines)

Over a minor ii–V Barry ran the dominant scale a minor third above the V down to the V’s third, giving the notes of harmonic minor. A tonic minor took the minor sixth diminished scale; Chris Parks recalls no melodic minor in his outlines.

In plain words

Over a minor ii–V Barry does not reach for a separate minor scale; he runs a dominant scale. For G half-diminished to C7 he plays E♭7 down to the third of C, and in the 1998 workshop he says that this is F harmonic minor. Thinking of it as E♭7 means, as The Labyrinth of Limitations points out, that the dominant-scale exercises (half steps, pivots and the rest) carry over.

The 1998 workshop, part 30:001:13Scales on Indiana in A-flat, part 13:33Little Labyrinth 59: Making Connections with Barry Harris’s Teachings7:007:32

He also practised the harmonic minor itself, with his rules. In the 1998 workshop the class ran F harmonic minor down with one added half step, starting from each degree in turn: from the tonic it sounds like F minor, from the second like G half-diminished to C7. Barry said the rules make the scale more inviting than the bare harmonic minor.

The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit2:543:315:2411:31

For a tonic minor chord the scale is the minor sixth diminished scale: the major sixth diminished scale with its third flattened. Barry pointed out that it contains the harmonic minor plus one more note, the sixth, which classical musicians used less but jazz needs. Students’ notes run it only up to the sixth when a minor chord gets a one-bar ‘up’.

Introducing the sixth diminished scale4:064:395:15My Chat With Chris Parks From Things I Learned From Barry Harris20:29Frédéric Galliano, Notes on the Method of Barry Harris ¶134jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Official Barry Harris Thread (jazzguitar.be forum thread) ¶2339

Chris Parks, who runs the ‘Things I’ve Learned From Barry Harris’ channel, sums up Barry’s outlines as three scales: major, dominant, and for a real minor the minor sixth diminished. Harmonic minor came up sometimes; melodic minor never appeared in a scale outline, though Barry did not say you shouldn’t know it.

My Chat With Chris Parks From Things I Learned From Barry Harris19:5620:2921:01

Step by step

  1. Minor ii–V: take the dominant a minor third above the V (the one whose third is the root of the half-diminished chord), run it down from its seventh, and end on the third of the V instead of the tonic.

    G half-diminished to C7: E♭7 down to the third of C
    𝄞♭♭♭
    1. D♭
    2. C
    3. B♭
    4. A♭
    5. G
    6. F
    7. E

    Scales on Indiana in A-flat, part 10:013:33Tom Cleary (University of Vermont), What is this scale called: Charlie Parker ¶4

  2. Those seven notes are the F harmonic minor scale. Played in eighth notes from the beat, the notes on the beats (D♭, B♭, G, E) spell a diminished seventh chord, which works as a rootless C7♭9.

    The 1998 workshop, part 31:13Tom Cleary (University of Vermont), What is this scale called: Charlie Parker ¶5

  3. Barry’s fuller version starts on the tonic of E♭7 and adds one half step between the tonic and the seventh, so that E♭ is heard as well as D♭.

    E♭7 from the tonic, one half step, down to the third of C
    𝄞♭♭♭♭
    1. E♭
    2. D
    3. D♭
    4. C
    5. B♭
    6. A♭
    7. G
    8. F
    9. E

    The 1998 workshop, part 30:001:13

  4. Tonic minor: the minor sixth diminished scale, which is the harmonic minor with the sixth added.

    F minor sixth diminished scale
    𝄞♭♭♭
    1. F
    2. G
    3. A♭
    4. B♭
    5. C
    6. D♭
    7. D
    8. E

    Introducing the sixth diminished scale4:39My Chat With Chris Parks From Things I Learned From Barry Harris20:29Frédéric Galliano, Notes on the Method of Barry Harris ¶134

  5. As students write it for an outline, a one-bar minor ‘up’ climbs this scale only as far as the sixth, leaving out the seventh.

    F minor up (students’ rule)
    𝄞♭♭♭
    1. F
    2. G
    3. A♭
    4. B♭
    5. C
    6. D♭
    7. D

    Frédéric Galliano, Notes on the Method of Barry Harris ¶134jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Official Barry Harris Thread (jazzguitar.be forum thread) ¶2339

an added note, outside the scale

How he said to practise it

  • Run F harmonic minor down with one added half step between the tonic and the seventh, then start from the second, the third and every other degree, moving the added note each time; listen for the F minor and the G half-diminished to C7 sounds.

    The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit2:543:315:24

  • Know the basics: all your minor arpeggios, all your diminished chords, all your triads. Barry listed these right after the E♭7 example.

    The 1998 workshop, part 31:131:45

In Barry’s words

Each one plays from the moment he says it. Every other moment he teaches it is listed below.

E flat 7 down to the 3rd [of] C is F harmonic minor.

The 1998 workshop, part 3, The Hague, 1989–98. 1998 workshop: why he likes E♭7 over G half-diminished to C7. 1:13 Watch on YouTube at 1:13

It includes the harmonic minor scale, see, it includes the harmonic, except it’s got one more note than the harmonic minor scale.

Introducing the sixth diminished scale, The Hague, 1989–98. Turning the sixth diminished scale minor by flattening the third. 4:39 Watch on YouTube at 4:39

Classical musicians didn’t use that six quite as much as we use it.

Introducing the sixth diminished scale, The Hague, 1989–98. The extra note in the minor sixth diminished scale is the sixth. 4:39 Watch on YouTube at 4:39

The first one is an F minor. The second one is G half diminished to C7.

The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit, The Hague, 1989–98. F harmonic minor with the half-step rule, started from each degree. 5:26 Watch on YouTube at 5:26

Where this comes from

Everything above is drawn from these. Open any one to check it.

Every moment he teaches it9 moments in 4 recordings

Each time opens the transcript there; the video plays when you are online.

The 1998 workshop, part 3

The Hague, 1989–98 — 76 min On YouTube

  1. 0:00

    Over G half-diminished he likes E♭7 from its tonic, one half step added, down to C’s third.

    Watch on YouTube

  2. 1:13

    Wants E♭ as well as D♭: E♭7 down to the third of C, which is F harmonic minor.

    Watch on YouTube at 1:13

Scales on Indiana in A-flat, part 1

The Hague, 1989–98 — 6 min On YouTube

  1. 3:33

    Indiana: G half-diminished to C7 means E♭7, since G half-diminished is the chord on its third.

    Watch on YouTube at 3:33

  2. 0:01

    Indiana outline: ‘F minor up’, then E♭7 down to the third of C.

    Watch on YouTube at 0:01

The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit

The Hague, 1989–98 — 35 min On YouTube

  1. 2:54

    F harmonic minor coming down with one added half step, from each degree.

    Watch on YouTube at 2:54

  2. 5:24

    From the tonic the rule sounds F minor; from the second, G half-diminished to C7.

    Watch on YouTube at 5:24

  3. 9:43

    Which notes of F minor fall on the beat when you come down the scale.

    Watch on YouTube at 9:43

  4. 11:31

    The rules make F harmonic minor more than just a harmonic minor scale.

    Watch on YouTube at 11:31

Introducing the sixth diminished scale

The Hague, 1989–98 — 27 min On YouTube

  1. 4:39

    Minor sixth diminished scale: flat the third; harmonic minor plus the sixth.

    Watch on YouTube at 4:39

From the lessons2 lessons, 9 points

Notes taken from Barry’s classes, each tied to the moment it comes from.

Rules matter more than scales: play each rule from every degree

  1. Idea

    Barry told his classes that the rules are more important than the scales, and that they must become second nature. His method: state a rule (for example, one added half step between two particular notes), pick a scale, and play the rule from each degree of that scale. Doing that, he said, is how you really learn.

    The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit0:0019:43The 1998 workshop, part 335:23

  2. Exercise

    In F harmonic minor, add one half step between the tonic and the seventh and play the descending scale in time after a count-off. Then start from the second (the extra note now falls between the second and the tonic), then from the third, and so on through every degree. Listen to how each starting point gives a different chord sound: from the tonic it is F minor; from the second it is G half-diminished going to C7.

    The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit2:142:543:315:24

  3. Exercise

    When you run a scale down, the added half step can go after any note that falls on the beat. In C major from the top, C, A, F and D land on the beat; in F harmonic minor, F, D-flat, B-flat and G do. So you could choose, say, to put the half step between the fourth and third of F minor. Barry said rules like this make a scale sound more inviting, turning F harmonic minor into more than just a scale.

    The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit9:4310:1610:5711:31

  4. Exercise

    The rules work going up too. Barry started to switch to a diminished scale on B but stopped himself, saying he was changing too quickly. The class then played up from tonic to tonic with one half step added between the tonic and second, then between the second and third, then the third and fourth, and so on, until one was needed between the seventh and the top (E and F, which fits the F minor scale they had been using). Later he reminded the class that a diminished scale has eight notes.

    The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit12:0512:5126:33

  5. Exercise

    Rules can add more than one note. In F minor, go from the tonic up to the minor third with two half steps added, then do the same from the next degree, where Barry said one has to go between G and A-flat. A bigger version: in C major go from C up to G filling every gap: D-flat between C and D, E-flat between D and E, G between E and F (already a half step apart), F-sharp between F and G. Then play it in time.

    The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit14:2815:1019:4320:31

  6. Exercise

    Anything you can do, Barry said, you can do from any degree to any degree. One example: in C major, go up two half steps from the fifth and then come down the chord. Another: go chromatically from the fifth up to the major seventh, then come down the chord. Pick the rule, then apply it on each degree of the scale.

    The 1998 workshop, part 2: breaking the habit18:0229:5130:24

The minor sixth diminished scale and its diminished partner

  1. Idea

    To make the scale minor, play exactly the same scale and flatten the third: C D E-flat F G A-flat A B. Barry notes that it contains the harmonic minor scale plus one more note, the sixth (A natural), which jazz needs. Classical musicians, he says, used the sixth much less, mostly as an added note, but here it belongs to the scale.

    Introducing the sixth diminished scale4:064:395:15

  2. Idea

    Each minor sixth chord pairs with one diminished chord, and you must know which one immediately, without working it out from a major seventh. Asked for B-flat minor 6, you should answer A diminished (A, C, E-flat, F-sharp); G minor 6 goes with F-sharp diminished. Barry showed F minor 6 and G minor 6 each with its diminished partner, sometimes starting from the diminished chord on top, and noted that Chopin sometimes used this sound.

    Borrowed diminished notes on All the Things You Are6:487:20Practising the sixth diminished scales3:013:36

  3. Exercise

    Play B-flat minor with the sixth in the bass. Then take a note of the chord, borrow the diminished note just below it, and hit the chord again.

    Borrowed diminished notes on All the Things You Are7:20

In writing7 notes

What his interviews, his students’ class notes and other teachers’ articles add.

How other teachers explain it6 videos, 7 series episodes

Barry’s students, and their students, teaching it their way. A second opinion, not Barry.

In the teaching series

Episodes on this idea in the long series by other teachers. Each name opens that whole series in order.

JazzSkills

Pete Martin

Things I’ve Learned From Barry Harris

Where the accounts differ2 points
Read further3 links

These open on the web.

Books and paid courses