Questions tagged [scales]
For questions about playing, understanding, or studying scales.
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Piano scale and arpeggio fingering technique: Thumb Under vs Thumb Over methods
Let's first define the methods:
Thumb Under (TU): the thumb is brought under the hand in order to pass the 3rd or 4th finger for playing the scale. The thumb has movement up and down (to play the key)...
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Priorities of piano scale practice as a complete beginner and what should I be paying attention to
So, I decided my life needed a little more piano so I picked up a MIDI keyboard and started learning some of the basics. The very first thing I'm doing is learning the scales (starting with major) and ...
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Where can I find jazz piano scales to practice?
I played the piano for years classically when I was younger, but eventually left it alone in my late teens and twenties. I probably wouldn't have if I'd been allowed to do more Jazz as I always wanted ...
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From Scales and Chords Theory to a chord Progression
I'm a beginner at music theory and started learning it just about a week ago. The whole thing with the piano scales and chords is really difficult to understand, but I have a lot of fun learning it.
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What are the modes derived from the C major scale?
I'd like for someone to explain the 7 modes derived from the C major scale.
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Is there a name for the octatonic scale made from the first sixteen harmonics? And is it good for anything?
When the first sixteen harmonics are octave-displaced and compressed into the span of one octave, the result is an octatonic scale whose pitches have the following frequency ratios:
1
9:8
5:4 (a.k.a. ...
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What are the pentatonic scale fingerings for piano?
What is the most common fingering for the pentatonic scale? Minor and major. All of them. I don't know about standards; there are lots of different fingerings you could use. I would like to know what ...
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What are the characteristics of Late Romantic English Music?
What common characteristics can you find in the works of composers like Holst, Vaughan Williams, or Grainger? I list these three in particular because of their propensity to build on existing folk ...
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Why are there just 7 modes?
Let's take a look at Ionian mode. Its pattern is "WWHWWWH". Which there are 7 steps. If we consider this mode building problem as a permutation problem then we can arrenge them into 7!/(2!*5!)=21 ...
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Should I remember the diatonic chord names of each scale?
I've mainly been playing chords/scales based on patterns that I remember. But do you think it's worthwhile to actually remember/take time to commit to memory the names of each chord in each key?
So ...
user34288
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what is the name of this chord D F# and C? the "D" is the root [duplicate]
i thought it was d7 but the fifth note(A) is missing
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Confusion regarding intervals
In my study of intervals I learned that two notes separated by one semitone is a minor 2nd interval. This feels quite intuitive to me and I readily accepted this fact a long time ago.
Just recently, ...
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How can I explain/understand a flattened 2nd in a minor melody
My 10yo daughter (~grade 4 piano level) likes composing her own tunes, and then we'll discuss them and expand on them. Recently she composed a melody that appears to be in c# minor, except that every ...
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Confused as to why one scale fits four different chords
I'm learning the bass guitar. I'm looking at a song called "Bling Thing" in the Rockschool Grade 4 book. On YouTube in the bass guitar backing track this part begins at 0:48.
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What is the I-vi-ii-V Chord Progressions?
Are there any scales that work well over this progression? My Mistake!! I was thinking of the song Breezin' by George Benson!!
JustnBeaver
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Song in C major has F# note
I've composed a melody in C Major but there's this one note, F#, which comes at two places. So, can I still say the song is in C major? Or, does it change the key of the whole song?
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Why is music using a temperament other than 12-TET rare today?
There are several other temperaments like 19-TET and 31-TET, but almost all modern music uses 12-TET. Why aren't the two former used more often?
anon
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Are inverted scales a thing?
Inverted chords are a thing.
But are inverted scales a thing?
What do I mean with that?
A scale is defined by a certain set of notes where one of them is the root key. Playing the root key feels like ...
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Confusion about blues scale and chords
I have no real knowledge about music theory, so my question may be nonsensical. Before my question I need to state an assumption which may be wrong and gets me confused: when playing a song in a ...
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Do People and/or Robots Speak on Pitch and in Harmony with themselves?
I asked this in Linguistics, but apparently nobody there wants to venture an answer; maybe this is a better place to ask it.
My ear is not good enough to tell via observation whether people speak in ...
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harmony with 24 note scales
has anyone tried writing music with 24 notes in the scale? so for each of the usual 12 notes an extra note is inserted between it and the next one 1 semitone above. I don't understand why people stop ...
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Relative minor: What notes do I actually play?
I am confused on the difference on the actual notes between a relative minor and major key - Are the notes (as in the accidentals of the key signature that tell us which notes are sharp or flat) the ...
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Whats are some ways of visualizing notes on guitar's fret-board if you come from piano background?
I come from piano background and it's been really difficult to visualize the notes I'm playing on guitar. On piano it's simple - they follow sequentially.
So, my question is - what is the best way to ...
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Major Blues Scale over I-IV-V progression
In the C major blues scale, there's no F note.
The I-IV-V progression is C-F-G
Without resorting to the C minor blues scale, how do I improvise over a I-IV-V progression using the C Major blues ...
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Scales, modes, techniques for writing "Super Mario" style music
I'm looking for a push in the right direction as to how to go about writing Super Mario type video game themes. What scales/modes work best, time signatures, etc...
Examples of where I'm trying to go:...
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Is there a simple way to transpose a song from one key to another? What is the methodology?
What is a simple way to accomplish transposing a song from one key to another key?
In other words if I am looking at a song written in the key of C and can't sing it in that key and I want to ...
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Scales name convention
Suppose I take the whole step half step pattern from C major scale. Why can't I just impose this pattern to make C# major, D major, D# major, E major, F major ... this way? How to determine if its ...
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Can someone please tell me why there are 5 different patterns to Penatonic scales
I mean if you can move them, why do you need more than one? All are movable up and down the fretboard? Right? So why does each need 5 patterns and how do you know which one to use? This has really ...
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Must a song using the A minor scale begin or end with an Am chord? If not, how can I tell what the scale is?
Is it a must for a song using the A minor scale to begin or end with an Am chord?
If not, how can I tell what the scale is?
For example, how can I differentiate between the C major scale, A minor ...
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What is a name of a major scale with raised 2nd degree?
Assuming a major scale that has a raised 2nd degree and no other alterations: 1 ♯2 3 4 5 6 7 (8) (for example, in C it will be C D♯ E F G A B (C)).
This is a bit unusual due to 2 consecutive semitones ...
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Why does this harmonic minor scale notation use a natural sign?
On the Wikipedia page for Minor scale is this diagram of the harmonic minor scale starting at A:
Why is there a natural sign on the F? I thought the natural sign was only used when the note had been ...
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What Scale is This? (E-F-G-A-A#-C-C#-D#-E)
I sort of stumbled upon an unusual scale in a black metal song.
It goes: E-F-G-A-A#-C-C#-D#-E
or
HWWHWHWH
It is not a scale I recognize, though it resembles a mixture of familiar scales.
Would ...
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Should I practice til I "get it" or until I'm sick of it?
I'm about 3 weeks into practicing playing two notes in each hand using four different quartal voicings. Below is some notation paraphrasing the practice patterns I'm using. I apply the pattern to ...
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Is there any scale that contains eight different notes?
Today while praticing guitar I've played the following notes on the fretboard, one after another:
E F G G# A B C D# E
It didn't sound wrong, in fact, it sounded like Harmonic Minor with something ...
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Pentatonic, hexatonic, heptatonic, octatonic... what is a 12 tone scale called?
Pentatonic, hexatonic, heptatonic, octatonic... what is a 12 tone scale called?
This seems like a dumb question. I know it's just called the chromatic scale, but isn't there a ______-tonic name?
I ...
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Why are there only N scales and 12 notes values that can be root note
I just started reading music theory book with no previous musical background. I understand that a scale is defined as a set of musical frequencies. for example major scale with root note C
# Ratios ...
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Why does this progression alternating between major and minor chords sound right?
I'm an intermediate guitar player and I'm trying to improve my music theory. When I'm sweep picking I play a pattern because it sounds right to me. Now that I'm learning how music theory works, I'm ...
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How to make a song with chords and scales?
I play acoustic guitar and have been learning a bunch of chords and scales. I can play many progressions already, and I am starting to write music.
I am wondering how you would bridge chord ...
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What fingerings are used for the minor and major blues scales?
It's my understanding that for the diatonic scales, there's a consensus of which fingerings are optimal for most people. They are not a hard rule, some pianists use other fingerings, but they are ...
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Can accidentals be seen as a temporary change in scale?
Just wondering if accidentals in music can be seen as a temporary change in scale. There's a lot of scales that have just one note difference, so they sound good when they're interchanged temporarily. ...
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Is there a reason why "Scale Inversions" don't get discussed?
It only dawned on me recently, but it's quite a fundamental and important feature of scales that they are not mirrored under their own inversion.
The intervalic formula for major is:
W W H W W W H
If ...
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What does it mean when a piece is written on a specific scale?
All the music pieces and songs are written on some scale, say if we consider D major scale the Cs and Fs must be sharp and others natural. But the Cs and Fs in that piece might be flat or natural at ...
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Are there any tuning differences between the C# Major Scale and Db Major Scale? [duplicate]
I am looking for a little clarification related to the differences between sharp (♯) and flat (♭) notes in music theory.
Some people say C♯ and D♭ are the same, but some say they are not. Some say ...
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Are intervals like major 3rd, minor 3rd, and major 2nd all based on the scales, or are they based on how many semitones they have?
Are intervals like major 3rd, minor 3rd, and major 2nd all based on the scales, or are they based on how many semitones they have?
I ask this question because if I play the C major scale, and I ...
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Converting to harmonic and melodic minor
Is this correct?
In converting from major to harmonic minor of the same root (not the relative minor (with the same key signature)), flatten the 3rd and 6th.
In converting from major to melodic ...
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Scales and Ascending/Descending differences
I'm learning some unique guitar scales and I'm confused with certain scales. For example, the Raga Asavari scale plays a list of notes when ascending. However when you descend, you add more notes to ...
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Can you construct chords for all musical modes?
One way I'm aware of to find the chords in a given key are to generate triads 1,3,5 for each note in the major scale. E.g. In C major you get CEG (C), DFA (Dm), etc leading to the typical I ii iii IV ...
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How much of classical Arabic maqam music is improvised?
I am listening to a piece of music sung in maqam bayat (or bayati). It's Psalm 126, which is 7 verses long, but the piece takes about 10 minutes and sounds very improvisatory. This is similar to ...
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Why does the minor pentatonic scale sounds "oriental" to me?
I've been training my minor pentatonic scale on guitar for a while (mostly playing it in A with the first position) and it always sounded somewhat oriental to me, in the sense of the musical airs you'...
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What is a standard order for learning/practicing scales when learning how to play the electric bass (esp. for jazz/blues music)?
I'd like to bring my theoretical knowledge and practical skill for playing jazz/blues scales on the electric bass up to snuff. What is the standard order for learning/practicing jazz/blues scales on ...
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