Major scales: how they work in all 12 keys
A major scale is a row of seven notes built from the pattern whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half. Start on any note, follow the pattern, and you get the major scale of that key. It is the sound of do re mi fa sol la ti do.
The major scale is the most important scale in Western music. It is the scale you hear when you sing do re mi fa sol la ti do, and it is the yardstick that musicians use to describe every other scale, chord and key. If you learn only one scale well, learn this one.
What is a major scale?
A scale is a set of notes arranged from low to high in a fixed pattern of steps. A major scale has seven different notes, and then the first note comes back an octave higher, so you count eight notes from the bottom C to the top C. The first note is called the tonic or keynote, and it gives the scale its name: the C major scale starts on C, the G major scale starts on G.
Each note of the scale is also called a scale degree and gets a number from 1 to 7. Degree 1 is the tonic. The scale degrees have names too: tonic, supertonic, mediant, subdominant, dominant, submediant and leading tone. Most students only need the numbers, and the names of 1, 4, 5 and 7 in particular.
The major scale formula
Every major scale uses the same pattern of whole steps and half steps. A half step is the distance from one piano key to the very next key, black or white. A whole step is two half steps. The pattern, from the first note to the eighth, is:
| Step | From degree | To degree | Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 2 | Whole step |
| 2 | 2 | 3 | Whole step |
| 3 | 3 | 4 | Half step |
| 4 | 4 | 5 | Whole step |
| 5 | 5 | 6 | Whole step |
| 6 | 6 | 7 | Whole step |
| 7 | 7 | 8 | Half step |
Written short, the formula is W-W-H-W-W-W-H. The two half steps fall between degrees 3 and 4, and between degrees 7 and 8. Everything else is a whole step. That one fact lets you build a major scale on any note.
Memory trick: The scale is two matching halves. W-W-H is the first half, then a whole step in the middle, then W-W-H again. The two halves are called tetrachords, and each one is four notes long.
How to build a major scale on any note
- Pick your starting note. This is the tonic.
- Write out the seven letter names in order, starting on that letter and using each letter once (for G: G A B C D E F).
- Check each step against the formula W-W-H-W-W-W-H. Where a step is the wrong size, add a sharp or a flat to the upper note.
- Finish by repeating the first letter an octave higher.
For G major the steps G to A and A to B are whole steps, B to C is a half step, C to D and D to E are whole steps, but E to F is only a half step where a whole step is needed. So F becomes F♯. The G major scale is G A B C D E F♯ G.
Why do the keys have sharps and flats?
Because the pattern of whole and half steps is fixed, the scale has to be bent to fit it whenever you start on a note other than C. The notes that bend are the sharps and flats. Each major key ends up with its own set, called its key signature. C major has none, G major has one sharp, F major has one flat, and so on, up to seven sharps or seven flats.
The circle of fifths shows how the twelve major keys are related, and why each step around the circle adds one sharp or one flat.
The twelve major keys
There are twelve different starting notes on the piano, so there are twelve different major scales. Some of them can be written two ways: F♯ major (six sharps) and G♭ major (six flats) sound the same, as do D♭ major and C♯ major, and C♭ major and B major. Those pairs are enharmonic keys. In practice, musicians use whichever spelling has fewer accidentals, or the one that suits the piece.
The chart below this text on the page shows every major scale in every key with its notes and key signature, so you do not have to memorize the spellings. Use it to check your own work after you build a scale from the formula.
How to practice major scales
- Say the notes aloud while you play them, so you learn the spelling as well as the fingering.
- Start with the keys that have the fewest sharps and flats: C, G, D, F and B♭.
- Play slowly and evenly, one octave at first, then two.
- Sing the scale with solfege syllables, or hum along, to link the sound to the pattern.
- Mix up the order: try the keys around the circle of fifths, then in half steps.
Scales are not just finger exercises. Most melodies you know are made from the notes of one major scale, and the chords that go with them come from the same notes. Knowing the scale tells you which notes fit and which would sound out of place.
Major scale or major key?
The two ideas are close, but not the same. The scale is the ladder of notes. The key is the home note and the family of notes and chords around it. A piece in G major mostly uses the notes of the G major scale, treats G as home, and has F♯ in its key signature. The major scale pages for each key describe both together.
Major scale in every key
| Key | Notes | Key signature |
|---|---|---|
| C major | C D E F G A B C | no sharps or flats |
| G major | G A B C D E F♯ G | one sharp: F♯ |
| D major | D E F♯ G A B C♯ D | two sharps: F♯ and C♯ |
| A major | A B C♯ D E F♯ G♯ A | three sharps: F♯, C♯ and G♯ |
| E major | E F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D♯ E | four sharps: F♯, C♯, G♯ and D♯ |
| B major | B C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A♯ B | five sharps: F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯ and A♯ |
| F♯ major | F♯ G♯ A♯ B C♯ D♯ E♯ F♯ | six sharps: F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯ and E♯ |
| C♯ major | C♯ D♯ E♯ F♯ G♯ A♯ B♯ C♯ | seven sharps: F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯ and B♯ |
| F major | F G A B♭ C D E F | one flat: B♭ |
| B♭ major | B♭ C D E♭ F G A B♭ | two flats: B♭ and E♭ |
| E♭ major | E♭ F G A♭ B♭ C D E♭ | three flats: B♭, E♭ and A♭ |
| A♭ major | A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G A♭ | four flats: B♭, E♭, A♭ and D♭ |
| D♭ major | D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ C D♭ | five flats: B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭ and G♭ |
| G♭ major | G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭ D♭ E♭ F G♭ | six flats: B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭ and C♭ |
| C♭ major | C♭ D♭ E♭ F♭ G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭ | seven flats: B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭ and F♭ |
Check yourself
1. What is the formula for a major scale?
Answer: W-W-H-W-W-W-H. The two half steps in a major scale fall between degrees 3 and 4, and between 7 and 8.
2. Which note is raised in the G major scale?
Answer: F to F♯. G major has one sharp. The step from E to the seventh note must be a whole step, so F becomes F♯.
3. Where are the half steps in a major scale?
Answer: Between degrees 3 and 4, and 7 and 8. Every other step is a whole step.
4. How many different notes does a major scale have, not counting the repeated octave?
Answer: Seven. Seven letter names, one each, then the tonic returns an octave higher.