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Topic: Why is the melodic minor scaled called Hawaiian |
Jesse Pearson
From:
San Diego , CA
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Posted 12 Dec 2003 1:56 pm |
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This chord finder site in Japan,
http://looknohands.com/chordhouse/guitar/index_rb.html
has a scale called the "Hawaiian scale", it slipped my mind at first that it was the Melodic Minor scale, because they were calling it the Hawaiian scale. Nobody else caught on to this and it just jumped into my head today what it was. Is there a story about the Melodic Minor scale being used alot in Hawaiian music, or is this a Japanese thang? |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 12 Dec 2003 2:22 pm
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It must be this specific person's idea. I've never heard of the melodic minor scale being referred to as a Hawaiian scale before this.
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Brad's Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 12 Dec 2003 3:01 pm
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I've seen the ascending melodic minor scale called the Hawaiian scale in different places ..... ScaleBuilder and Under alternate name for Melodic Minor (ascending) ...
Seems like it is mainly associated with the building of exotic Wind Chimes.
Erik van der Neut's Chord House site ("Look no Hands") is out of Boston, Mass. Its a real cool site .... Maybe Andy V. knows him ??
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www.horseshoemagnets.com |
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Jesse Pearson
From:
San Diego , CA
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Posted 12 Dec 2003 3:26 pm
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| Well, I called the wind chime company and the manager thought it was a major pentatonic scale but then admited they just sell them and don't really know what the notes are because shipping is in charge of the web site and none of them know anything about musical notes, ah ha! |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 12 Dec 2003 3:36 pm
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Maybe I'll pick-up that Bass Chime set instead of another Ricky ... at $499.95 its a "steel"  |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 12 Dec 2003 3:52 pm
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Here's the notes for the various Hawaiian Wind Chimes ...
Seems they are droppin' the b3rd and the 6th on the soprano and alto... and the b3rd and the 7th on the tenor and bass.
They say they are tuned A 440 .. wonder if its ET or JI  [This message was edited by Rick Aiello on 12 December 2003 at 03:57 PM.] |
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Ricky Davis
From:
Bertram, Texas USA
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Posted 12 Dec 2003 4:23 pm
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Because the most used Hawaiian tuning is a Minor chord.
Ricky |
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Jesse Pearson
From:
San Diego , CA
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Posted 12 Dec 2003 9:33 pm
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But why the melodic minor out of all the minor scales? The one scale site listed the 4th as a grace note. Maybe it's the way the notes line up on a certain steel tuning? This is a true steel mystery. Two different sites with the same Hawaiian scale, what do these guys know that we don't? The scale has a G aug chord on the upper end and a minor blues 3rd on the bottom, C6 tuning key of of E, 4th fret position. It would be cool if the melodic minor and the 6th tunings had a special connection. I gotta figure this one out?
If we are talking of like C#m7/E6, C6/Am7, A6/F#m7 ect. all have a minor 7th in their chords for the minor chord perspective and melodic minor has a major 7th in it's scale. 
Is this something like why the blues scale fits over a dom7 chord kinda thang? Could anyone please explain why this approach got the name "Hawaiian scale" over the other minor scales out there and how to use it. Thank you...
[This message was edited by Jesse Pearson on 13 December 2003 at 09:58 AM.] |
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Jesse Pearson
From:
San Diego , CA
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Posted 13 Dec 2003 7:39 am
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Well, playing E melodic minor over the 4th fret E6 box in C6 tuning, fits nicely over the 2nd and 4th fret dom box. It has that early jazz "hapa haole" sound. You can play all the modes from E melodic minor across the fret board cause there are no avoid notes in this scale, it streches the neck out without having to think about it. I think this scale does have the same effect as the minor blues scale as far as not having to think about it much, this and the notes on different strings lining up good, make this more of a "Hapa Haole Hawaiian scale" to be exact. Why hasn't anybody talked about this approach around here in these terms before? Try it, you'll see what I mean. 
I see why the 4th note is treated like a grace note, not as sweet as the other scale tones. It's like I have been free jamming on melodic minor all along on the C6 tuning and didn't know it because the notes just line up and slide that way naturally. Trippy!
[This message was edited by Jesse Pearson on 13 December 2003 at 08:22 AM.] |
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John Bushouse
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Posted 13 Dec 2003 9:09 am
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| Maybe it's because most of the Hawaiian music I know is older, but almost all of it is in a major key. |
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Ricky Davis
From:
Bertram, Texas USA
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Posted 13 Dec 2003 10:03 am
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quote:
Ricky, are you saying to just line up the A melodic minor to the relative A minor triad found in like the C6 chord and go from there based on that? Is this something like why the blues scale fits over a dom7 chord kinda thang? Could you please explain why this approach got the name Hawaiian scale over the other minor scales out there and how to use it. Thank you...
I'm sorry I don't understand the question; I was only born in 1962
Those posted in that right box are "Exotic Scales"...relative to the style from all those different regions. I don't see anything as being a scale exclusive to a region?....To me; I scale is a scale....>but they are depicting the scales as being a certain style inharent from certain regions.....>go figure..ha...I guess it's just pure bordom and they gotta come up with something to fill their box..ha.
Ricky
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Jesse Pearson
From:
San Diego , CA
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Posted 13 Dec 2003 11:14 am
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Ricky, I think I understand it all now, melodic minor just lays out great on a 6th tuning (like a major pent blues). You just naturally play and slide into that shape anyways when you noodle in the Dom box postition. I don't use the melodic minor in it's pure form on guitar much, but I have used 3 of it's mode's for a few years now on blues and jazz stuff. I'm still working this stuff out on C6 and think there must be more than meets the eye with this scale and it's mode's for the 6th tunings we all like so much.
In the key of E melodic minor, we have a G aug chord and it's inversions up and down the neck, which has a fun sound. I'm just taking the notes of the scale and seeing how many JB voicings I can find in the scale tones. The simple Hawaiian vamp lead line that Rick Aiello shared with us above, finds all of it's notes in the melodic minor? The 4th chord voicing's (A in the key of E) are also there, like the dom7 and 9th that JB uses. I don't know, wish one of our elder statesmen could shed some light on the history of this scale when Hawaiian music was king. [This message was edited by Jesse Pearson on 13 December 2003 at 01:35 PM.] |
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