Scales
Scales are groups of notes, in which tonalities are based on. The two most common scales in western music are the major and the minor scales. Most western music is based on these two scales, therefore it is important for us to study them and know them very well.
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In This section, we are mostly going to look at major scales and the three basic kinds of minor scales (natural, harmonic, and melodic minors).
Table of Contents:
Major Scales
A major scale is constructed of seven notes. The first note of the scale is the key in which the scale is in. For example in a major scale where the first note is "C", the name of the scale would be "C major".
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From the first note, the major scale pattern is:
major 2nd - major 2nd - minor 2nd - major 2nd - major 2nd - major 2nd
This pattern is relative to the key the scale is in. We can apply this pattern to any other starting note to get a new key. For example, F major:
Notice how the 4th note of the F major scale is written as a "Bb" and not an "A#". In a major or a minor scale, we need one of each letter. In this case, we have an "F", a "G", and an "A", we have no "B", which in because of the major scale pattern will have to be a "Bb".
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Considering this rule, if we were to write out the accidentals (sharps and flats) of each individual scale this is what it would look like: