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Basic Practical Theory 3

3.  When you can memorize this

    T    2    2    1    2    2    2    1

You can find any Major Scale easily

If you want to find the Major Scale for the Key of C

it is easy

Just imagine you are taking a walk on top of the keyboard

shown below


First stand over the note of C. This is called the Tonic (T)

C is your 1st note. Your starting note

Now take 2 steps right. 1st step C#   to   2nd step D (D is your 2nd note)

Now take 2 steps right. 1st step D#   to   2nd step E (E is your 3rd note) etc…

Just continue following the pattern you memorized before

T    2    2    1    2    2    2    1

Study the diagram below

The notes of the C Major Scale are -  

I     II   III   IV    V  VI  VII                      I   (Octave)

C - D - E - F - G - A - B - and back to C  again

An Octave is the eighth note of the scale which has the same letter name, in this example it is the note of C but is higher in pitch than the first note of C we started with.  

If you continued up the keyboard you would arrive another Octave higher etc.. And of course you can have Octaves lower too.

Notice that the C Major Scale are all white notes.

There are no black notes.  For guitarists black and white notes are irrelevant  

Basically any Major Scale is made up of seven distinct notes, plus an eighth which duplicates the first an octave higher

1
Start
T
Step
1
2
1

E

F

G

A

E

F

G

A

F#

Gb

G#

Ab

A#

Bb

B

C

D

C#

Db

D#

Eb

F#

Gb

G#

Ab

A#

Bb

B

C

D

C#

Db

2
2
2
1
Step
2
2
Step
1
2
Step
2
3
Step
1
4
Step
1
Step
2
5
Step
1
Step
2
6
Step
1
Step
2
7
Step
1
1
Octave

The

C Major Scale

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