[Daygloworange]

When you are in the relative minor key, you will know for sure, because the fifth chord in the "chord scale" will be a Major chord. The fifth (dominant) must be a Major chord. That's why(the Harmonic minor)  is called a synthetic scale. The seventh tone is altered (sharped). The unaltered one is known as a "natural" minor.

A "Natural" minor:   A  B C  D  E  F  G    A min/Bdim/CMaj/Dmin/Emin/FMaj/GMaj

A "Harmonic" minor:  A  B C  D  E  F  G#    Amin/Bdim/CMaj/Dmin/EMaj/FMaj/G#dim

You need the fifth chord in the chord scale to be a Major chord in order to establish the Tonality. You can hear this with a simple I IV V chord progression played in a minor key. Play a (I IV V)sequence in Amin (A min-Dmin-EMaj). You will "hear" the G#in the EMaj chord lead you naturally back to the Amin chord. Hence the term leading tone.

If you want to emphasize it even more, you would play the E Maj in the example as a Maj/7 chord. Spelled E G# B D.

So:   Amin/Dmin/EMaj7

You will "hear" how when you arrive at the EMaj7, that the sequence or progression does not sound resolved till you come back to the Amin.

Try it, when you hear it, there'll be no mistaking it.

Cheers

[pjchappy]

I'm a bit confused again.  In simple terms, are you saying the natural minor, the 5th progression is a minor, but the harmonic minor, it is a major, and is usually played that way?

When I play both, I can hear how it is resolved in the Amin (playing the Amin chord progression, I-IV-V), but yes, even more so when I play an Emaj vs. the Emin.

Again, just want to say thanks for everyone's help!

p

[Daygloworange]

You need a dominant fifth chord with a leading tone to establish(resolve) the tonality.

In C Maj. the dominant fifth is G Maj ( G+ B+ D ) The "B" is the leading tone to "C" (half step below C).
                                             root+M third+m third

In A min, the dominant fifth is E Maj ( E G# B) The "G#" is the leading tone to "A" (half step below A) .
                                            root+M third+m third   

The "leading" tone is always the " Major third" of the dominant fifth of the chord scale, as well as a half step below the "Key" tonality.

The natural minor is just a way to not confuse the issue of no sharps or flats in the notation on the staff, as there are none in C Maj, or in A min, even though the dominant fifth in A min (EMaj)has a G#(that is always noted as an incidental on the staff right next to the note everytime is it played and then returned to natural with an accidental notation beside a natural G( neither sharp nor flat ).

Cheers

[pjchappy]

Another question, say a song is played in the C major scale, if the song were to go into a minor scale, would it be common for that song to use the Amin scale?  I know there's no hard set rules, but I'm just wondering if such a thing is common.

Sorry if I'm being a pain!

p

[Daygloworange]

Yes, the most common thing is to go from a Maj key, to it's relative min key.

So for C Maj, that would be A min. Then from A min, you could most easily transition to D min (only one flat in the scale) or from A min to E min (only one sharp in the scale).

These are your most common key changes in pop music.

In classical, alot of times you will go from Maj to min, in the same key. C Maj to C min. But this a more abrupt modulation.

Cheers