---
title: Harmonic Minor Modes
category: Modes
slug: harmonic-minor-modes
related: [what-are-modes, major-scale-modes, harmonic-major-modes]
url: https://fourthshub.com/docs/harmonic-minor-modes
---

# Modes of Harmonic Minor

Harmonic minor (1-2-b3-4-5-b6-7) raises the 7th degree of natural minor to create a leading tone. The augmented 2nd between the b6 and natural 7 gives the entire scale family an exotic, classical character.

## 1. Harmonic Minor
**Formula**: 1-2-b3-4-5-b6-7
**Character**: Dark and exotic. The augmented 2nd (b6 to 7) is immediately recognizable.
**Use**: Over minor-major 7th chords in classical contexts. The V7 chord in minor keys comes from this scale. Essential for classical minor key harmony.

## 2. Locrian #6
**Formula**: 1-b2-b3-4-b5-6-b7
**Character**: Locrian with a brighter 6th. Slightly less dark than standard Locrian.
**Use**: Over half-diminished chords where a natural 6th is desired. Less common than Locrian #2 from melodic minor.

## 3. Ionian #5 (Augmented Major)
**Formula**: 1-2-3-4-#5-6-7
**Character**: Major with an unsettled #5. Bright but with an augmented twist.
**Use**: Over Maj7#5 chords. Has a more classical sound than Lydian Augmented from melodic minor.

## 4. Dorian #4
**Formula**: 1-2-b3-#4-5-6-b7
**Character**: Dorian with an exotic #4. Combines minor quality with a Lydian-like raised 4th.
**Use**: Over minor 7th chords when you want an exotic, raised-4th color. Creates a Romanian folk music quality.

## 5. Phrygian Dominant
**Formula**: 1-b2-3-4-5-b6-b7
**Character**: The "Spanish" scale. A dominant sound with Phrygian darkness.
**Use**: Over dominant chords resolving to minor (V7 in minor keys). Extremely common in flamenco, Middle Eastern music, klezmer, and surf rock. The major 3rd + b2 combination is unique and instantly identifiable.

## 6. Lydian #2
**Formula**: 1-#2-3-#4-5-6-7
**Character**: Very bright and exotic. The #2 adds an augmented 2nd from the root.
**Use**: Over Maj7#11 chords when a more exotic color is desired. Less common but beautiful for composition.

## 7. Ultra Locrian (Altered Diminished)
**Formula**: 1-b2-b3-b4-b5-b6-bb7
**Character**: Maximally dark. A diminished scale with even more flattened degrees.
**Use**: Over diminished 7th chords. The bb7 (enharmonically a 6th) is the defining feature. Rare in practice but completes the family.

## The Harmonic Minor Sound

What unifies all these modes is the augmented 2nd interval that appears somewhere in each scale. This interval — three half steps between adjacent scale degrees — gives the entire harmonic minor family its characteristic exotic, classical quality.