Lesson 1 — Major Scales

Major scales

In this lesson you learn how major scales are built, the foundation of all harmonic theory. We start from C major, the white keys of the piano, to discover the structure they all share:

whole · whole · half · whole · whole · whole · half

Then we reproduce that structure from other notes following the circle of fifths: by ascending perfect fifths the sharps appear one by one, and by descending perfect fifths, the flats. You will also see why G major uses F♯ and not G♭, and how to use key signatures in the sequencer.

Before you begin, make sure you are comfortable with everything in the Preparatory Module: reading treble and bass clef, rhythm, intervals and using the sequencer.

Exercise

In the sequencer, write the 15 major scales, ascending from tonic to tonic (8 notes each):

• Ascending fifths: C · G · D · A · E · B · F♯ · C♯
• Descending fifths: F · B♭ · E♭ · A♭ · D♭ · G♭ · C♭

Export the MIDI file and upload it to the Virtual Teacher. Don't move on to Lesson 2 until your exercise is perfect.