[Back to Main Menu]

Unit on Scales

Lesson 1

Creating a Major Scale

An interactive keyboard is available for this lesson, it will or should have already loaded directly above. The file for this keyboard tool is 728k and may take a while depending on your internet connection speed. If the keyboard has not fully loaded above, I suggest that you move on reading the lesson as this process takes place.

The major scale is made up of eight pitches. The last note being a repeat of the first, only one octave higher. The distance from one pitch to the next is called a step. In the major scale these pitches are organized in "steps" which are in a diatonic order. In general, movement from any key to an adjacent key is a Half Step. A Whole Step is therefore made up of two half steps. In the major scale there are half steps (H) between the 3rd and 4th and the 7th and 8th scale degrees. All the remaining steps are called whole steps (W).


The following pattern is used to build a major scale:

W W H W W W H


The major scale was used in medieval times though it was called the Ionian Mode at that time. This scale can be found most easily on the piano by playing all of the "white keys" from C to C.

 
WWHWWWH
C D E F G A B C

If you did not do so earlier use the interactive keyboard so that you can hear what the Major Scale sounds like. Remember to play from C up to the following C, do not play any of the black keys.

Using the pattern for major scales shown above. Major scales can be created from any of the twelve pitches on the keyboard. In the following window try to build a major scale, using pitch letter names, which starts on the pitch of F.

W W H W W W H
F a F
Be sure to PLAY what you have written on the keyboard.
After all it is the sound that is most important.

Did you get it right? Put mouse here to find out.

 

Assignment: (If you choose to accept it:)

Create Major scales in at least 5 keys. The twelve usual tonic letter names are listed below.

C, Db, D, Eb, E, F, F#, G, Ab, A, Bb, B

For an extra challenge, try these....

Cb, C#, D#, E#, Fb, G#, A#,B#

E-mail me with your answers, webmaster@glassmusicworks.com
Be sure to include the type of scales you were attempting to build.

[Back to the Top]