The natural minor scale — also called the diatonic minor — is the full seven-note version of what most guitarists first learn as the pentatonic. If you already know your guitar scales starting from the pentatonic, the natural minor is your next step up. It fills in the two “missing” notes and gives you a complete palette for soloing, writing, and understanding music theory on the fretboard.
Colin Daniel covers the A minor diatonic scale at the 5th fret across two lessons. The first teaches the scale itself with two fingering options. The second shows you how to practice it properly with a metronome — because knowing the shape is only half the battle.
A Minor Diatonic Scale: The Shape
Diatonic means seven notes: A-B-C-D-E-F-G. Compare that to the pentatonic’s five notes (A-C-D-E-G), and you’ll see that the diatonic adds B and F. The pentatonic fits right inside the diatonic — every pentatonic note is also a diatonic note. That’s why learning the A minor pentatonic first makes the transition smoother.
The scale uses the one-finger-per-fret rule: 1st finger handles the 5th fret, 2nd the 6th, 3rd the 7th, and pinky the 8th. The pattern covers two octaves plus two extra notes to fill out the hand position.
The fingering is 1-3-4 on most strings, with one exception: the 4th string requires a pinky stretch to the 9th fret. That’s the spot where most players stumble. Colin’s advice is to keep your hand as centered as possible — don’t let the whole hand slide up for that one note. Stretch the pinky while keeping the rest of your fingers in position.
Alternative Fingering for the 4th String
If the pinky stretch is giving you trouble, Colin offers a second option. Instead of stretching to the 9th fret on the 4th string, you can drop your hand position down one fret and play that B note on the 3rd string instead. You’d shift from the 4th string to the 3rd string one fret lower, then continue in the new position.
Both fingerings are valid. The pinky stretch keeps you in one position and tends to be smoother on the descent. The position shift can feel more natural for players with smaller hands. Try both and use whichever fits your hand better.
Practicing with a Metronome
Colin’s metronome approach is straightforward but effective. He recommends a quartz metronome over the old wind-up pendulum style — pendulum metronomes go off-beat if they’re not sitting perfectly level. A simple $15-20 quartz metronome from any music store works fine.
The practice progression:
- One note per beat at 120 BPM. Start here. Play each note as legato (sustained) as possible — hold it until you need to move to the next note. Down-up alternate picking throughout.
- Double it: two notes per beat (eighth notes) at 120 BPM. This effectively puts you at 240 notes per minute. The gap between notes shrinks, and your timing has to tighten up.
- Slow it down to 60 BPM, one note per beat. This is harder than it sounds. With a larger gap between clicks, it’s much more difficult to land exactly on the beat. This is where your timing really develops.
One technique Colin stresses: alternate your starting stroke between scales. Play the first run starting on a downstroke. When you reach the bottom, start the next run on an upstroke. This forces you to practice both orientations equally, so you don’t develop a weak side.
How the Natural Minor Relates to Pentatonic
Understanding this relationship is important. The minor pentatonic is a stripped-down version of the natural minor. The five pentatonic notes are all contained within the seven diatonic notes. When you’re soloing and want a simpler, more “safe” sound, lean on the pentatonic notes. When you want more color and melodic options, use the two extra diatonic notes (the 2nd and the b6th).
The natural minor scale is also the starting point for modifications that create different moods. Adding a flatted 5th creates darkness. Raising the 7th note gives you harmonic minor. But it all starts from this unaltered, “natural” form of the scale.
This scale is completely movable, just like the pentatonic. Slide the whole shape up five frets and you’re playing D minor. Move it to the 3rd fret and you’re in G minor. The pattern stays exactly the same — only the key changes. If you’re looking for a complete overview of what scales to learn and in what order, check out the beginner’s guide to guitar scales.