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I notice that the blues scale usues notes that don't fit into the regular pentatonic scale, is there an entire scale that icorporates this method?

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You mean heptatonic? – Mechanical snail Aug 20 '12 at 5:20

3 Answers

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A chromatic scale is a scale starting at the root note where every note on the scale is a semi-tone apart. On a piano if you were to start at one note and hit every key up to the octave, you'd have a chromatic scale.

Example:

C Chromatic: C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C

D Chromatic D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C C# D

E Chromatic E F F# G G# A A# B C C# D D# E

F Chromatic F F# G G# A A# B C C# D D# E F

G Chromatic G G# A A# B C C# D D# E F F# G

A Chromatic A A# B C C# D D# E F F# G G# A

B Chromatic B C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A#

Ad Nauseum for all the sharps. I'm pretty sure that's correct, and an expert in theory can verify me :D.

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I'd say "every note in the scale is a semi-tone apart" instead of "every tone", but otherwise good. – Ian C. Jan 25 '11 at 14:47
Also worth noting that every chromatic scale has the same notes in it. Only the root changes from one scale to the next (a bit like the modes, but with less of a tonal center). – yossarian Jan 25 '11 at 14:58
Thx Ian, updated with your feedback! – Jduv Jan 25 '11 at 15:07
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Interesting relevant bit of trivia: chromatic, from chroma, meaning color, is so named because notes that do not fall into the implied key are usually called "color notes." – NReilingh♦ May 31 '11 at 20:01
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To add to Jduv's answer, the harmonic chromatic scale has a set form, whereas the melodic chromatic scale does not, because it depends on the key and whether or not the scale is ascending or descending. The chromatic scale is also a nondiatonic scale.

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This isn't a difference in the scale itself, only in how it is notated. – Rein Henrichs May 31 '11 at 18:11
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Instead of the tone-tone-semitone-tone-tone-tone-semitone pattern of major scales, C major being CDEFGABC, each note is a semitone apart - C chromatic being C Db D Eb E F Gb G Ab A Bb C.

On your guitar, this is the equivalent of playing every note from C to C, or in tab:

------------------------
 --------------0-1-2-3-4-
 ----0-1-2-3-4-----------
 3-4---------------------
 ------------------------
 ------------------------
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