Original: While this definition encompasses many scales and modes such as Dorian mode and the Phrygian mode , the term in its stricter sense is usually limited to the natural minor , harmonic minor , and melodic minor scales , described below , which are in most common use in Western classical music ( see major and minor ) .
Simplified: A minor scale in music theory is any scale that has at least three scale degrees : the tonic , the minor third above the tonic , and the perfect fifth above the tonic .