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Why do pop songs so often use the natural minor?

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minor pop
7K views 16 replies 8 participants last post by  tdc 
#1 ·
I have been wondering this for a while - if, for example, the song was said to be in A minor, it would not have the G# (let alone an F# as in the melodic minor). Does anyone know the reason for this? I would say 99% of pop songs I listen to are in the natural minor - why is this? Thanks for your help :)
 
#2 ·
I think it's because the writers are thinking in terms of scales, rather than functional harmony. The dominant with sharpened third is stronger in terms of function because of the leading tone, but the alterations require sensitive handling to avoid undesirable cross-relations (having a G in one measure followed by a G# in the next, for example). There's an idea in popular music circles that notes and chords such as the flatted third and sixth are "outside of the key," which is wrong. They are outside of the scale, but the key is not identical to the scale, and depends on the relationships around a central harmony, not on the associated scale.
 
#3 · (Edited)
There's an idea in popular music circles that notes and chords such as the flatted third and sixth are "outside of the key," which is wrong. They are outside of the scale, but the key is not identical to the scale, and depends on the relationships around a central harmony, not on the associated scale.
It may be wrong in the context of classical music, but not popular music.

Here's a relevant poll, possibly the most inanely specific music theory poll I've made
 
#6 · (Edited)
Especially when using progressions including augmented and diminished harmonies, you should pay careful attention to having the voices move as little as possible. Block chords like you find in most popular music will sound odd if you're moving to dissonances. A more typical progression in F minor would be: Fm-Bbm6 (bass of Db)-C7-Fm.

I was referring to modal mixture in the major because it's a more obvious example, and found relatively frequently both in contemporary popular music and music of the Romantic era, and shows the difference in conception.
 
#7 · (Edited)
I'd say both pure natural minor and natural/harmonic/melodic mixed minor can be found in pop music fairly often. Even in the latter case however they are not necessarily used in a classically orthodox manner.

When it comes to really popular pop music, it tends to stick to the "four chords" which are I, IV, V, vi in major, which are the same chords as these in the relative minor: i, bIII, bVI, bVII. Harmonic minor doesn't have those same exact chords, and if you use harmonic/melodic minor in the melody it may clash with them. This raises the question why those four chords are so popular, though...
 
#8 ·
I think Dim7 is on to something here. The scale is more important in pop music as a harmonic device, when you build triads on it.

Santana's "Evil Ways" uses a dorian scale. The raised sixth of dorian makes the IV chord major instead of minor (Amin-D maj).
"It Ain't Neccessarily So" does the same.

The chord results are what they are after, and that's why they use a scale that will give them the chord quality (major or minor) that they are after.
 
#11 · (Edited)
I've always used the white keys as a 'template' for major and minor key stations. If there is a chord built on the b7 degree, I see it as "G" in relation to A minor (since C maj has no b7 white note, only B), so that makes it in a minor key. The same with other white notes in A minor: (A)-B-C-D-E-F-G-A min (A=root, B=min7b5, C=III maj, D=subdominant, E=dominant, F=flatted submediant, G=flatted seventh, A=root).
 
#16 · (Edited)
Here is an answer for the OP's original question: Because straight dominant to tonic cadences with those g#s sound cheesy.

Good recommendations from Athrun200!
 
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