Major And Minor Scales Whole And Half Steps
W h w w h a2 h here is a harmonic minor scale starting on f.
Major and minor scales whole and half steps. Each note is a certain distance apart from the next and they form a pattern that repeats. A whole step two frets. These major scales all follow the same pattern of whole steps and half steps. A half step one fret.
The basic code for major scales. We can build a major scale starting on any note if we keep the same sequence of whole and half steps. So going one fret up or down the neck is a half step. The simplest major scale to write is c major the.
Whole step whole step half step whole step whole step whole step half step can be used to make a major scale starting on any note of the keyboard. Going up or down two frets equals a whole step. Major and minor scales half and whole steps. Half step two keys and therefore notes pitches that are adjacent on the piano keyboard whole step two keys and therefore notes pitches that have another key in between chromatic half step a half step written as two of the same note with different accidentals e g f f.
The distance from a to b however is a whole step because it consists of two half steps. Naturally occuring half steps. This system of intervals is the diatonic pattern. They have different sets of notes because the pattern starts on different notes.
The eighth duplicates the first at double its frequency so that it is called a higher octave of the same note from latin octavus the eighth. Notice how the two half steps are always separated by either two or three whole steps. All major scales have the same pattern of half steps and whole steps beginning on the note that names the scale the tonic. W w h w w w h whole whole half whole whole whole half.
Major scales have the following sequence of whole and half steps. Major scale whole step whole step half step whole step whole step whole step half step. Half steps and whole steps are the two smallest intervals of the traditional musical alphabet. We say this is the d major scale.
Compare pictures 1 and 2 above. Let s take the major scale as an example. In case this is new to you here s a brief explanation of what half steps and whole steps are. Like most scales the major scale pattern works with half steps or semitones and whole steps or tones.
The harmonic minor scale has the following pattern of half steps whole steps and one augmented second a2. All major scales follow this exact pattern.