Questions tagged [scales]
For questions about playing, understanding, or studying scales.
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Why do minor keys sound “sad”? [closed]
Oftentimes major keys are called "happy" and minor keys are "sad". Why is this? Is it universal across cultures that use these scales? Do similar connotations exist in other scale systems?
(If this ...
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Why are there twelve notes in an octave?
I know that one scale consists of 12 half-tones. But my question is still: Why? Why not 13 or 11?
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What is the difference between a mode and a scale?
I can't seem to find a straight definition for both.
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Ways to get out of a scalar rut?
I'm a well versed and experienced guitarist. I have a decent sense for rhythm and melody, but I have a VERY hard time with soloing. I know you've heard it all before I'm one of those guys that got ...
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The major scale - why and how?
background: I am an amateur guitarist. I was trained in Indian classical music as a kid. Most of what I know in music theory is from books or Google. So please feel free to correct me or tell me if I'...
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Why is a C7 chord named a dominant seventh chord?
I understand that a C7 chord contains a flattened 7th note in the C major scale, but what specifically makes this a dominant 7th chord? To me there is nothing 'dominant' about taking a note out of ...
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Key signature for writing in modes other than major and minor
I have trouble deciding what accidentals to put in the key signature for pieces in Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian or Mixolydian modes. There seem to be trade-offs associated with each choice.
For example, ...
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Why does the scale have seven (or five) notes? Why not six?
I'm a programmer by trade, and I have always felt that music was arbitrarily difficult. Please forgive my inexperience with musical notation. I had a little thought experiment with my wife today, and ...
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Why learn scales? What are they for?
I tried Googling but it seems there is no answer for this one. So the internet assumes everyone knows what scales are for? Why should I learn them? Are they important to be a good guitarist?
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What does it mean to write a song in a certain key?
I have been searching for a while to try to correctly understand this.
What exactly does it mean if for example a song is written in C Major? Does it mean the song's notes cannot contain any sharps ...
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Why do notes have multiple names?
I've seen the same note called different names for example the note F# can also be written as Gb. Why is this the case and are there times to use one name over another?
Dom♦
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Major scale of one note is the Minor scale of another note?
I am learning guitar at the moment and I learned the major scale.
Then I checked the minor scale and the positions are the same!
Not only that, the C major scale is the same as the A minor scale.
So ...
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Why are the white and black keys on the piano placed the way they are?
I am pretty convinced it is not just for historical reasons.
I have found a mathematically-sound explanation of the twelve-tone musical scale, thanks to this question. Does anyone know a similar, ...
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Is it possible to write a song without a key?
"This song is in F Major", "That song is in A Minor", "This song is in D Minor, but modulates to F Major in the middle", etc.
Can we say "This song has no key"? Are there songs that have/follow no ...
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What are modes and how are they useful?
I'm a self-taught guitarist with zero to little experience in music theory. After marrying a violinist I found that there's a lot to music theory that I know tribally but don't understand the ...
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What exactly does practising scales teach?
First off, I'm not claiming that practising scales isn't a good thing to do. I'm just curious what specifically it teaches you that doesn't come from playing music.
I'm aiming it as a generic ...
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What's so special about minor and major scales?
background: I'm an amateur and self-learner pianist. What I know, I know from books or google, so I'll start with summarising what I already know - please don't hesitate to correct me if I have ...
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Why isn't D the "most central" note?
When laying out the notes in the two-dimensional Wicki-Hayden layout, which is the most symmetrical layout I know of, it is visually clear that D is the "most central" note.
Why, then, doesn't D play ...
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When is a piece in A minor versus C major?
When would you say a piece, or a movement in a symphony, is in A minor versus C major? They both use the same notes on the scale... what would indicate that the piece is in A minor?
Let's take an ...
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Why are C♯ and D♭ different frequencies?
I am a music enthusiast, and I was recently reading What is the difference between equivalent Flat and Sharp keys as far as musical notation? Are there any reasons to prefer one over the other?
This ...
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The differences between natural, harmonic and melodic minors
I'm studying scales and came across the natural, harmonic, and melodic minors. I understand the patterns for each scale but what other important differences exist between the three?
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Understanding minor key harmony
A comment discussion under this question from me, clued me in to the fact that I don't really understand how minor keys work very well. So here is what I think I know
The natural minor comes from the ...
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The notes outside the major scale form a pentatonic scale
Something that woke me up in the middle of the night, realising that if you take the 12 notes in an octave in western music, and from that you remove all those belonging to a major scale, you are left ...
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Is there any way to find a key of song somehow mathematically/algorithmically?
There are many scales with different keys for the same notes.
For example, with the notes C D E F G A B C,
we can have: C major, C Ionian, A natural minor, D Dorian, E Phrygian, F Lydian, G ...
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Are sharp keys "bright" and flat keys "dark"?
I was reading this book and on the "Circle of Fifths" chapter, it claims that keys with sharp key signatures (C, G, D, ...) are "often thought by musicians" to be "bright"...
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What is the difference between equivalent Flat and Sharp keys as far as musical notation? Are there any reasons to prefer one over the other?
I wrote a song in Db Major, but I could also notated that it would be equivalent to say C# Major as well. I am not well versed in musical theory and I think both are equivalent to each other and ...
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Why are the 4th and 7th scale degrees removed from the major scale to make the Pentatonic scale?
The Pentatonic scale is often described as being the major scale with the 4th and 7th notes removed. E.g The C major scale is C D E F G A B C, so the C Major Pentatonic scale is C D E G A C.
Why are ...
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Why does the Dorian mode on C have two flats?
I'm studying scale modes and I just found on Wikipedia that the Dorian mode on C has two flats...
Why is this? Because the Dorian mode is just the major scale (Ionian) starting from the second note, ...
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Algorithms for music composition
I'm a beginner in music but I also like to fool around with simple computer programs . So I found a little python library to generate MIDI files . So what I do now is that I have a few rhythm ...
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Why is the aeolian mode the minor scale?
I've studied music theory for many years now, and one thing has always confused me about the naming methodology for the minor scale.
A major scale is based off the Ionian mode and consist of only ...
Dom♦
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Why does the melodic minor scale turn into natural minor when descending?
I understand the construction of the scales; natural minor, harmonic minor (raises the 7th) and melodic minor (raises both 6&7 when ascending).
What I don't understand is why, when I play melodic ...
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What is the importance of practicing scales on piano, and the proper fingering of them?
First of all I want to point out that I practice scales a lot and even enjoy it.
I just don't know why they are so important, as this site says for example:
"Proper fingering of the scales on the ...
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With sheet music, how do you determine whether the song is in the major key or the minor key?
For example, if the key signature on the left doesn't have any sharps or flats then it could theoretically be in either the C Major scale or the A Minor scale. How do you determine which one?
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Is F Lydian mode in the "key" of C Major?
In most cases (if not all), a piece of music without sharps or flats in the key signature, would be considered in the key of C major or A minor. This question assumes the context of Western Music ...
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What is the first scale one should learn on guitar
The title really sums it all up but I'll try expand it slightly. Lets say I'm learning guitar and would like to improve my guitar work. Which of the scales should I learn first and why?
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What is it about this note that subverts my expectations?
This question regards the main theme from the video game The Last of Us. The video I will be referencing is someone playing it here:
There is a little introductory ...
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If Für Elise is in Am why there is a D# in it?
Für Elise intro starts with E D♯ E D♯, Wikipedia says the key is Am.
What scale does it fit? Is it like a blues scale where D♯ is a flat 5?
Why D♯ is used in the sheet music? Is it easier to read ...
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What are the characteristic scales, keys, intervals, progressions, etc. of pirate / sailing / nautical music?
Title pretty much says it. I am barely an armchair composer, but I would like to try my hand at some game music that requires some nautical theming. It seems to me that penny whistles and a celtic ...
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How can horns, most of which have only three buttons, play all their notes?
I’m a big fan of the “horn” family but have trouble understanding how horns are able to play the same scales and modes that a piano is able to play, being that horns only have a few valves. In some ...
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Making Sense of Blues Soloing; differentiating major/minor pentatonics
Quarantine has allowed ample time for musical exploration. I'm a classically trained pianist studying music in college, and I'm using this extra time to be immersed in and learn how to play the blues.
...
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Is G sharp major a real key?
I'm mostly self-taught, so I don't know much in the way of theory beyond the basics. I have heard of G sharp Major a few times. I believe a scale in the key goes as such: G♯, A♯, B♯, C♯, D♯, E♯, Fx, G♯...
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Difference between keys and scales?
I am a Tabla (a North Indian percussion instrument) player and I am trying to learn the western music theory. My study was going well until I stumbled upon keys and scales. Now though I know what ...
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What are the greek modes, and how do they differ from modern modes?
This Question might be TwoFold, based on an uncertainty I have
I understand the construction of traditional Ionian-Locrian modes, and I have read that various notes in the modes have traditionally ...
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Why is it called the chromatic scale?
The definition of chromatic as given by Google:
adjective: chromatic
MUSIC: relating to or using notes not belonging to the diatonic scale of the key in which a passage is written.
(of a scale) ...
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Is this piece of renaissance music really in the locrian mode?
A fifteenth-century dance manual contains this piece of music:
which appears to be (uncharacteristically) in the locrian mode. Is it really, or am I mis-reading? Does anybody know of other music ...
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Exactly what does "diatonic" mean?
Is the meaning very context dependent, or can it be defined in general terms? Does the meaning change by author or period?
Sometimes it's used to refer to anything that stays within a specific tonal ...
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Do all chords in a progression usually fit within a scale
I am wondering if when writing a chord progression, all the notes fit within a single scale.
If not, what is the logic behind chord progressions?
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What makes the tonic the tonic and when do I know it changed?
What makes a note the tonal center of a scale other than forcing the listener to come from and go back to the selected note as the center? Or is that what makes that note the tonal center?
Also at ...
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How did the audience guess the pentatonic scale in Bobby McFerrin's presentation?
The video below is entitled "The Power of the Pentatonic Scale". And from the video you'd think that people are inherently tuned to the pentatonic scale. But I was wondering if they're really ...
user34288
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Guide-lines for creating a simple chord-progression?
I am working on a computer program that generates a simple melody, based on a simple chord progression of four chords taken from the 7 triads of the C Major scale. The program is also supposed to ...
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