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Guitar scale · exotic

C Hungarian Major Scale

1 ♯2 3 ♯4 5 6 ♭7: a scale with a major 3rd, a raised 2nd and a raised 4th, so it has an augmented 2nd from the root up to the ♯2.

Notes CD#EF#GABb
Formula 1 ♯2 3 ♯4 5 6 ♭7
Steps W+H H W H W H W
Mood Exotic, Bright, Dramatic
Heard in Folk-inspired Music, Modal Improvisation

Interactive scale diagram

C Hungarian Major Scale · Standard tuning

STR OP 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 E A D G B E

Tap any note to hear it.

C Hungarian Major Scale tab: all 5 positions

Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.

Position 1 · E shape frets 8–12
e|--------------------------------------8-11-12-|
B|--------------------------------10-11---------|
G|----------------------8-9-11-12---------------|
D|-----------------8-10-------------------------|
A|---------9-10-12------------------------------|
E|-8-11-12--------------------------------------|
Position 2 · D shape frets 10–14
e|-------------------------------------------11-12-14-|
B|-------------------------------------11-13----------|
G|----------------------------11-12-14----------------|
D|-------------------10-13-14-------------------------|
A|----------10-12-13----------------------------------|
E|-11-12-14-------------------------------------------|
Position 3 · C shape frets 12–16
e|-------------------------------------------12-14-15-|
B|-------------------------------------13-16----------|
G|----------------------------12-14-15----------------|
D|-------------------13-14-16-------------------------|
A|----------12-13-15----------------------------------|
E|-12-14-15-------------------------------------------|
Position 4 · A shape frets 15–19
e|-------------------------------------------15-17-18-|
B|----------------------------------16-17-19----------|
G|----------------------------15-17-------------------|
D|-------------------16-17-19-------------------------|
A|----------15-18-19----------------------------------|
E|-15-17-18-------------------------------------------|
Position 5 · G shape frets 17–21
e|-------------------------------------------17-18-20-|
B|-------------------------------------19-20----------|
G|----------------------------17-20-21----------------|
D|-------------------17-19-20-------------------------|
A|----------18-19-21----------------------------------|
E|-17-18-20-------------------------------------------|

How to play C Hungarian Major on guitar

Find the root first: C is at fret 8 on the low E string and fret 3 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every C on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (3, 5, ♭7), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.

Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 8–12. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.

Degrees

DegreeNote
1 C
♯2 D#
3 E
♯4 F#
5 G
6 A
♭7 Bb

Chords in C Hungarian Major

Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in C Hungarian Major; tap one to see its shapes.

Degree Chord 7th chord Function
I C C7 Tonic
♯ii° D#dim D#dim7 Supertonic
iii° Edim — Mediant
♯iv° F#dim F#m7b5 Subdominant
V — — Dominant
vi Am Am7 Submediant
♭VII — — Leading tone / subtonic

Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android

Practise C Hungarian Major anywhere, even offline.

This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.

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  • Maqam & makam between the frets, and the Name the Note quiz

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  • 282 exercises that play as tab, and routines with a speed trainer
  • Chord & Scale Finder: tap the neck, get the name
  • Theory Lab and the Progression Builder with 51 genre loops
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Questions

What notes are in the C Hungarian Major Scale?
The C Hungarian Major Scale has 7 notes: C, D#, E, F#, G, A, Bb.
What chords are in the C Hungarian Major Scale?
The chords of C Hungarian Major are C (I), D#dim (♯ii°), Edim (iii°), F#dim (♯iv°), Am (vi).
What is the formula of the hungarian major scale?
1 ♯2 3 ♯4 5 6 ♭7, which is the step pattern W+H H W H W H W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Where do I play C Hungarian Major on the guitar?
The root C is at fret 8 on the low E string and fret 3 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 8–12, and four more positions connect it up the neck.

Hungarian Major Scale in every key

More scales in C