Want to create excitement and build tension? Change the scale. Want to create a simple catchy tune? Use simpler intervals or fewer notes. If you can play a scale on the piano beautifully, imagine what you’d be able to do with a piece by Chopin!įor composers, the notes of a scale and especially the intervals between them give endless and unique possibilities for creating mood and character in music. They allow us to practice very specific techniques and articulations without all the difficulty and the nuances that music from the repertoire demands. The 12 Major Scalesįor instrumentalists scales are an opportunity to practice deeply. Here are all 12 major scales with their proper sharps and flats. Or, for example, in F major we must flatten the note B to ensure that we get a half step between the third and fourth notes (A to B flat) rather than a whole step (A to B natural). This ensures that the last interval is a half step (F sharp to G) rather than a whole step (F to G). So what do we do to make sure that the WWHWWWH formula is the same no matter which note we start on? We use sharps and flats!Īs you’ll see below, for example, the G major scale requires that the F is sharpened.

As we said, this is what gives the major scale its distinct character – changing the pattern would result in an entirely new scale. What’s very important is that the pattern of whole steps and half steps is always maintained. Since we have 12 different notes in the musical alphabet and the major scale can start on any of them, we get 12 major scales.

Below is a list of all 12 major keys and their corresponding parallel minor keys.The major scale pattern works just the same way if it starts on any other note. The 3rd, 6th and 7th notes are lowered by a half step. G minor scale notes are G – A – B♭ – C – D – E♭ – F – G G major scale notes are G – A – B – C – D – E – F♯ – G Let’s look at another example: The parallel minor of G major is G minor. When comparing the two scales together, you can see the third, sixth and seventh notes of the C minor scale is lowered by a half step. Both scales have the same first scale degree. For example, the parallel minor of C major is C minor.

To better understand the relationships between major and minor keys, we will discuss parallel keys here.Įach major scale also has a parallel minor scale. We already know that each major scale has a relative minor scale.

A-flat major scale