Many theory books on music, and music education do a great job at explaining the logic behind the minor scale from a minor scale perspective. That is, coming up with the major scale first, and then rooting the minor scale from the relative minor or 6th mode of the major key.
However, once we can figure out that a major scale has a formula of W W H W W W H...W being whole step and H being half step with one note in between each step, finding the minor scale from the major root becomes easier. This, as opposed to the example cited above on the relative minor, can be called the parallel minor. This is simply achieved by applying the following to the major scale formula.
Flat the 3rd, 6th, and 7th note of the major scale and you would have come up with the minor parallel of that scale. For example if we apply that principle to the natural major scale of C, one would end up with the C minor scale...the notes will be C D Eb F G Ab Bb C...going back, this will be the parallel minor of C major...and, the relative major here will always be (as explained above), the 3rd degree or Eb major.
Therefore, from the major scale formula one could figure out any major scale...its relative minor or the 7 notes beginning with the 6th degree....its parallel natural minor by flatting the 3rd, 6th, and 7th of the original major scale in question...and this last parallel minor scale's relative major by following the 7 notes beginning with the 3rd degree.
Example of above paragraph applied:
C D E F G A B C --major
A B C D E F G A --relative natural minor
C D Eb F G Ab Bb C --parallel natural minor
Eb F G Ab Bb C D Eb --relative major of parallel natural minor above
Bonus info...kill 2 birds w/ one stone:
Raise the 7th of any natural minor and you will get the Harmonic Minor Scale.
Raise the 6th, and 7th of any natural minor and you will get the Melodic Minor Scale.
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