Must know: Basic Musical Terms
Updated
All the basics of Musical Scales and Notes summary for Beginners
What is the Scale?
In music theory, a scale is defined as any set of musical notes ordered by fundamental frequency or pitch. A scale is a set of notes that have a particular order and pitch. Any scale ordered by increasing pitch is an ascending scale while those ordered by decreasing pitch are called descending scales.
Now, all scales are defined or described by two major factors which are
1: Their interval patterns
2: The tonic note.
What are the musical notes?
“Notes” in music stand for the time and pitch of a musical sound. These are all the notes on your instrument: A, A#/Bb, B, C, C#/Db, D, D#/Eb, E, F, F#/Gb, G and G#/Ab
What is a Pitch?
A pitch is what describes how low or how high note sounds.
In total, there are 12 notes on a piano keyboard. This means that there are 12 keys that any song can be played on and these keys are: A, A#/Bb, B, C, C#/Db, D, D#/Eb, E, F, F#/Gb, G and G#/Ab
What are Interval Patterns?
On the basis of their interval patterns, scales are classified into four namely:
1: Diatonic
2: Chromatic
3: Major
4: Minor
The interval pattern stands for the distance between the musical notes which make up the scale.
What is a Tonic Note?
The tonic note is the note selected at the beginning of the octave. It is the note that starts the scale. For example, C major indicates a major scale with a C tonic because the note C is the note starting the scale. The same way, G major indicates a major scale with a G tonic and so on.
Most scales are octave-repeating. This means that the pattern of notes is the same in every octave, higher or lower. However, there is one scale which is an exception which is called the Bohlen-Pierce scale.
The distance between two notes in a scale is known as a SCALE STEP. Two notes in a scale can be numbered in relation to each other. For example, on the C major scale, we have CDEFGABC as a complete octave and the first note which is C and the third note which is E. C and E together are called a MAJOR THIRD.
The same way, D and F also create a major third.
The patterns behind major and minor scales
| Scale | Step pattern (W = whole, H = half) | Example from C |
|---|---|---|
| Major | W W H W W W H | C D E F G A B C |
| Natural minor | W H W W H W W | C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭ C |
| Major pentatonic | W W (W+H) W (W+H) | C D E G A C |
| Chromatic | All half steps | All 12 notes |
Intervals you’ll hear about most
- Major third = 4 half steps (C to E). It makes a chord sound major.
- Minor third = 3 half steps (D to F, or C to E♭). It makes a chord sound minor.
- Perfect fifth = 7 half steps (C to G). It gives a chord its strength.
Every major chord is a major third with a minor third on top (C–E–G); every minor chord is the other way round (A–C–E). Put that knowledge to work with our piano chords.
Frequently asked questions
How many notes are in music?
Twelve: C, C♯/D♭, D, D♯/E♭, E, F, F♯/G♭, G, G♯/A♭, A, A♯/B♭ and B. After B the pattern repeats an octave higher.
How many keys are there?
Twelve major keys and twelve minor keys: 24 in total, one major and one minor on each of the twelve notes.
What is the difference between a scale and a key?
A scale is the series of notes; a key is the music built from that scale, with its tonic as home. A song “in C major” mostly uses the notes of the C major scale.