I. Fundamentals
Major Scales, Scale Degrees, and Key Signatures
Chelsey Hamm and Bryn Hughes
Key Takeaways
- A major scale is an ordered collection of half (H) and whole (W) steps with the ascending succession W‑W‑H‑W‑W‑W‑H.
- Major scales are named for their first note (which is also their last note), including any accidental that applies to the note.
- Scale degrees are solmization syllables notated by Arabic numerals with carets above them. The scale degrees are [latex]\hat1-\hat2-\hat3-\hat4-\hat5-\hat6-\hat7[/latex].
- Solfège solmization syllables are another method of naming notes in a major scale. The syllables are do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, and ti.
- Each note of a major scale is also named with scale-degree names: tonic, supertonic, mediant, subdominant, dominant, submediant, and leading tone.
- A key signature, consisting of either sharps or flats, appears at the beginning of a composition, after a clef but before a time signature.
- The order of sharps in key signatures is F, C, G, D, A, E, B, while the order of flats is the opposite: B, E, A, D, G, C, F. In sharp key signatures, the last sharp is a half step below the tonic (the first note of a scale). In flat key signatures, the second-to-last flat is the tonic.
- The circle of fifths is a convenient visual for remembering major key signatures. All of the major key signatures are placed on a circle in order of number of accidentals.
A scale is an ordered collection of half and whole steps (see Half and Whole Steps and Accidentals to review).
Major Scales
A major scale is an ordered collection of half- (abbreviated H) and whole steps (abbreviated W) in the following ascending succession: W-W-H-W-W-W-H. Listen to to hear an ascending major scale. Each whole step is labeled with a square bracket and “W,” and each half step is labeled with an angled bracket and “H.”
A major scale always starts and ends on notes of the same letter name, one octave apart, and this starting and ending note determines the name of the scale. Therefore, depicts a C major scale because its first and last note is a C.
The name of a scale includes any accidental that applies to the first and last note.
shows a B♭ (B-flat) major scale—not a B major scale, which would use a different collection of pitches. Note that the pattern of half and whole steps is the same in every major scale, as shown in and .
Scale Degrees, Solfège, and Scale-Degree Names
Musicians name the notes of major scales in several different ways. Scale degrees are solmization syllables notated by Arabic numerals with carets above them. The first note of a scale is [latex]\hat{1}[/latex] and the numbers ascend until the last note of a scale, which is also [latex]\hat{1}[/latex] (although some instructors prefer [latex]\hat{8}[/latex]). shows a D major scale with each scale degree labeled with an Arabic numeral and a caret.
Below the scale degrees, Example 3 also shows another method of naming notes in a major scale: solfège solmization syllables. S