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The Hungarian minor scale, double harmonic minor scale, or Gypsy minor scale is a type of combined musical scale. It is the fourth mode of the double harmonic scale. It is the same as the harmonic minor scale, except that it has a raised fourth scale degree to introduce an additional gap, or augmented second. It is a symmetrical scale with a slightly ambiguous tonal centre, due to the many half steps.
Its step pattern is W, H, +, H, H, +, H, where W indicates a whole step, H indicates a half step, and + indicates an augmented second. While in intervallic terms, it would be described as: 1 2 ♭3 ♯4 5 ♭6 7.The scale contains two augmented seconds, one in each tetrachord. It also contains an augmented fourth between the first and fourth degree.This scale is the one perfectly balanced seven-note subset of the equally tempered chromatic scale: when its pitches are represented as points in a circle whose full circumference represents an octave, their average position is the centre of the circle.Other examples include the Dorian mode of major and fifth mode of melodic minor. The axis of balance for the Hungarian minor passes through the fifth and the flat nine, which is not included in the pitch set.
The scale may be used with minor or m+7 chords. See: chord-scale system. Chords that may be derived from the B Hungarian minor scale are Bm, C#7♭5, Dmaj7#5, E#6sus2b5, F#maj7, Gmaj7, G7, A#m6 and more.
This scale is obtainable from the double harmonic scale by starting from the fourth of that scale, so the C Hungarian minor scale is equivalent to the G double harmonic scale.