Poll: What do you think is The Saddest Minor Musical Scale?
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A/A#/Ab Minor Key Scale
33.33%
1 33.33%
B/Bb Minor Key Scale
0%
0 0%
C/C# Minor Key Scale
0%
0 0%
D/D#/Db Minor Key Scale
33.33%
1 33.33%
E/Eb Minor Key Scale
0%
0 0%
F/F# Minor Key Scale
0%
0 0%
G/G#/Gb Minor Key Scale
0%
0 0%
I don't understand Music Theory at all
33.33%
1 33.33%
Total 3 vote(s) 100%
* You voted for this item. [Show Results]

The Saddest Minor Musical Scale
#1
As you all know, most songs that you've heard such as Hip Hop, Rap, Rock n' Roll, and Heavy Metal have been relatively know for utilizing the Minor Scale. All your favorite songs that consists of the genres above (for those of you who do not know), utilize the Minor Scale to express depression, anger, and hard times.

If you're a musical enthusiast like me, and you love to rip the lyrics out of your favorite song, attempting to use your good ear and figure out what scale this song might be in, then this is for you and you understand what I'm talking about.

You see, I've seen discussions on JV about Pr2 Music, your favorite song, etc. But I haven't seen a discussion where someone started off taking a poll, asking others 'what is the saddest minor key scale within all 12 of the musical notes'. Since I'm outnumbered by 7 extra scales, and the poll uses a maximum of 10 answers, I'll have to arrange the questions so that they make sense. But for now, take a look at these 12 Minor Key Scales and tell me which one of these do you hear playing in your head whenever you're angry, depressed, or going through hard times.

In other words, that ONE scale that sends signals to your brain, activating a kill switch and provoking you to get up and fight someone, or perhaps hitting the gym because you want to get into shape! Or how about this... maybe you feel motivated to go accomplish something but you just haven't heard the right song playing the right Minor Key Scale. You get the picture by now. Even the right Chord Progressions can send signals to your brain!

Music tends to control our emotions whenever we first hear it, and when you listen to your favorite song many times, your subconscious mind is constantly absorbing the sounds of the instruments that all come together inside, the scale that it's being played in (if you understand Music Theory), and constantly dissecting the mood of the song and how it makes you feel.

So for example, if I'm listening to Hip Hop such as The Migos, or maybe a Rap Song such as Kodak Black, or perhaps a Heavy Metal Song such as Black Sabbath or Motörhead, then I'm going to dissect those songs and figure out how they make me feel, or if you want to get deep into it, figure out the Minor Scale that they're being played in (without the lyrics). These aren't my favorite songs, but it's just an example for those of you who might not be widely enthusiastic and passionate about music, or don't understand scales. Everybody is different, so don't assume that a certain genre of a song is going to make them feel a certain way that you think.

There are no right or wrong answers based on the poll because a lot of people have different opinions. However, I have heard that D Minor maybe the saddest scale out there. So if you do vote in the poll or want to give me your opinion, then please tell me why you chose this certain scale and what kind of affect it has on you, mentally. I need as much input as possible. Elaborate and share your thoughts below. All these scales are in the Natural Minor Scale.


   
   



If you're into making your own music, then you understand how complicated it can be to come up with a new melody sometimes. Most of the time, we're just sampling songs, trying to get the right sound or magic that'll turn our songs into 🔥! Even Chord Progressions can be difficult to learn sometimes.
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#2
only posers use scales other than harmonic minor, diminished, or atonal

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#3
can you provide a sample of each?
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#4
(15th February 2021, 1:36 PM)Camer the Dragon Wrote: can you provide a sample of each?
C Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8FbqVWpeJg

C#/Db Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTanc8Ig...ox&index=2

D Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpdlrfcE...ox&index=3

D#/Eb Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvSfrjlU...ox&index=4

E Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrSl-w6h...ox&index=6

F Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0l42yeD...ox&index=7

F#/Gb Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlLsA0Kw...ox&index=8

G Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozTrbp-2...ox&index=9

G#/Ab Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dm2RiXRJ...x&index=10

A Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LN7CXCAD...x&index=11

A#/Bb Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bz5djHP_...x&index=12

B Natural Minor Scale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xfu-wE-P...x&index=13
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#5
A minor, hands down. A direct opposite of C major, which was regarded as the happiest major.

Does not require flats/sharp. Its simplicity strikes straight into your emotions.
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#6
(15th February 2021, 9:05 PM)Battlealvin2009 Wrote: A minor, hands down. A direct opposite of C major, which was regarded as the happiest major.
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#7
I've only recently picked up the habit of trying to identify scales whenever I listen to music. To be honest, I think some of the songs that have evoked the most sadness and similar emotions in my opinion are in D Minor. You've heard that before, and I might have to agree with that.

I can provide a couple examples:



Though if you want to talk about my favorite scale, I'm a real sucker for songs in E♭ minor and G♭ major. I'm kinda drawn to dark places and things, and those scales evoke that feeling the most imo.
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#8
(15th February 2021, 9:58 PM)YOSUP72845 Wrote: I've only recently picked up the habit of trying to identify scales whenever I listen to music. To be honest, I think some of the songs that have evoked the most sadness and similar emotions in my opinion are in D Minor. You've heard that before, and I might have to agree with that.

Though if you want to talk about my favorite scale, I'm a real sucker for songs in E♭ minor and G♭ major. I'm kinda drawn to dark places and things, and those scales evoke that feeling the most imo.
I agree. The D Minor Scale has to be THE saddest scale I've ever heard. I think a lot of people say that because it really does bring a lot of depression in the wind, especially considering bad news.

E♭minor? Interesting choice. I'd have to say my favorite is the C Minor scale, as it's the first and most easiest scale to learn. Perfect example to follow: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjacI4ZR-OY
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#9
The saddest song I've heard is in G Major...sure, the scale itself can represent a certain emotion, but that's only a fraction of a song. Major scales all have a relative natural minor scale anyway, chords are often shared. Instrumental harmonics matter as well.

There are several more different scales out there also, that narrowing it down to these few for the saddest ever just won't cut it ^^
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#10
(16th February 2021, 10:49 AM)TRUC Wrote: The saddest song I've heard is in G Major...sure, the scale itself can represent a certain emotion, but that's only a fraction of a song. Major scales all have a relative natural minor scale anyway, chords are often shared. Instrumental harmonics matter as well.

There are several more different scales out there also, that narrowing it down to these few for the saddest ever just won't cut it ^^
Interesting point. I'll agree with you and say that there are other scales out there, close to the natural minor scale such as diminished, harmonic and atonal. I'm surprised you said G Major. Normally I would expect songs in a major scale to be more jovial instead of melancholy. I guess it depends on the song.
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#11
(16th February 2021, 3:42 PM)Fam93 Wrote: Interesting point. I'll agree with you and say that there are other scales out there, close to the natural minor scale such as diminished, harmonic and atonal. I'm surprised you said G Major. Normally I would expect songs in a major scale to be more jovial instead of melancholy. I guess it depends on the song.

Don't forget that if you only consider the 7 basic triads of these scales, you still have 3 major chords, 3 minor chords and 1 diminished chord, no matter if you're in the major realm, or its relative minor scale.

As you mentionned in your first post, chord progressions do matter a lot. Even if you're in, let's say, C Major, you can still use pretty sad/depressing progressions like I-ii-iii-vi.

Frequencies are also a weird thing. Play a D Minor scale starting on D3, then play it from D1 or D6 on a piano. Not exactly the same experience Tongue

All in all though I'm not saying natural minor isn't a sad scale, I'm simply giving more context ^^
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#12
In general, I feel that categorizing or comparing scales, regardless of their respective modes, does a disservice to the individual relationship everyone has with music. The music is only the language; the emotion is sent by the composer/lyricist, conveyed by the performer, and felt by the listener. Sometimes the listener feels more than the composer intended, whether that be because of the performer or because of the listener's experiences. I'm sure that everyone has songs that may not be inherently "sad" or "happy," but trigger strong emotions or reminders of the past to create that effect.


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#13
(17th February 2021, 1:14 AM)TRUC Wrote: Don't forget that if you only consider the 7 basic triads of these scales, you still have 3 major chords, 3 minor chords and 1 diminished chord, no matter if you're in the major realm, or its relative minor scale.

As you mentionned in your first post, chord progressions do matter a lot. Even if you're in, let's say, C Major, you can still use pretty sad/depressing progressions like I-ii-iii-vi.

Frequencies are also a weird thing. Play a D Minor scale starting on D3, then play it from D1 or D6 on a piano. Not exactly the same experience Tongue

All in all though I'm not saying natural minor isn't a sad scale, I'm simply giving more context ^^
That's a good observation of looking at chord progressions. I'm still learning more about chord progressions, but I can see where you're coming from. Funny thing is, I just learned the basics of chord progressions from last year :p

D3 is a good place to start for the D Minor scale, and so is D2. D1 would be too lifeless and D6 would be too happy in a higher octave. So yeah back to your point, it does depend on the experience/frequencies.

(17th February 2021, 5:51 AM)bls1999 Wrote: In general, I feel that categorizing or comparing scales, regardless of their respective modes, does a disservice to the individual relationship everyone has with music.
Well, in general I can understand how it might be a little misinterpreted, depending on how you look at it. Also, it depends on who the targeted audience is when considering that relationship with music. I think once you break down the scale comparison terminology, and consider certain genres that go by that scale (once heard by the listener), it becomes a different story.
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