Chord Scales - Part 1: The Major Scale
(07 Apr 03)
Rules For Constructing Major Scales
Rule #1: Never mix sharps and flats within one scale.
Rule #2: Every natural note name has to be used once and is not allowed to be used twice. Natural note names are c, d, e, f, g, a, and b. All scales contain these note names either in original form or with their appropriate alteration, meaning added sharp or flat.
Now that we have set up the rules we can actually start creating major scales.
Example: Construction of the D major scale
What we know up to now is that D is the Root. Using the major scale formula we fill in the missing note names. In parenthesis I included the "way of thinking".
(D is the Root - next note is a whole step above D - that's E)
(Another whole step - this time from E - we know that between E and F is a half step - therefore it can't be F - we have to alter F by using a # to make it a whole step. You may say "why can't I call it a Gb - it's the same pitch?". If you do this you infringe Rule #2 by skipping the note name F)
(Next note is a half step above F# - well, G)
(Now we have to name 3 whole steps in a row - G plus a whole step is A - A plus a whole step is B - B to C is a half step; to make it a whole step we have to name it C#)
(We already named all seven different note names of the D major scale. In order to complete the circle we include the half step from C# that brings us back to the Root D)
Let's check our result with the rules mentioned above. There are only sharps in the scale - all natural note names are used once, with 2 alterations of F and C to fit the formula.
Tetrachords
Another way to look at the construction of the major scale is by dividing it into two equal pieces called Tetrachords (tetra is Greek for four, ie four note chord), which are connected by a whole step.
Again in C:
Connected by a whole step we get the same result as where we started out.
I mention these tetrachords because they are very helpful when writing out all possible major scales in an logical (and musical) order, which we are going to do on the next page.
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