Parallel Major and Minor Keys

Parallel major and minor keys are major and minor scales that share the same starting pitch, for example the keys of C-Major and C-minor.

Parallel Major and minor keys: C-Major and C-minor

The following shows some more examples of parallel major and minor keys.

Parallel Major and minor keys: E-flat-Major and E-flat-minor

Parallel Major and minor keys: D-Major and D-minor

Relative Major and Minor Keys

Major or minor keys that share the same key signature are called relative keys. For example, in the key of G-Major, which has one sharp, the notes are G, A, B, C, D, E, and F#.

G-Major scale

 

If we instead start on the sixth scale degree of the major scale in the key of G-Major, we then get the relative minor key, E-minor, with the notes E, F#, G, A, B, C, and D.

E-minor scale

G-Major and E-minor share the same set of notes and and the same key signature, and therefore are the relative major and minor keys of each other.

Relative major and minor keys: G-Major and E-minor

To find the relative minor key of a major key, start on the sixth scale degree of the major scale. To find the relative major key of a minor key, start on the third scale degree of the minor scale.

The following shows some more examples of relative major and minor keys.

Relative major and minor keys: E-flat Major and C-minor

Relative major and minor keys: D-Major and B-minor

All 12 Major Scales

(You may want to read the articles about Scales, the Major Scale, or Key Signatures first.)

There are 12 different Major Scales: One with no sharps or flats, 4 with sharps, 4 with flats, and 3 with either sharps or flats depending upon enharmonic spelling.

Major Scales with no sharps or flats: C Major

Major Scales with sharps: D, E, G, A

Major Scales with flats: E-flat, F, A-flat, B-flat

Enharmonic Major Scales: C-sharp/D-flat, F-sharp/G-flat, B-natural/C-flat

Learn about other Scales.

Roman Numeral Chord Notation

The chords of the Major and Minor scales can be indicated by roman numerals.

Major chord: I, II, III, etc.

Minor chord: i, ii, iii, etc.

Augmented chord: I+, II+, III+, etc.

Diminished chord: vi°, vii°, etc.

Half-diminished chord: vii^Ø7, etc.

Extended chords: ii7, V9, V13, etc.

Altered tones or chords: #iv, ii#7

Chords of the Major Scale:

Chords of the Natural minor scale:

Chords of the Harmonic minor scale:

Chords of the Melodic minor scale (ascending):

Other examples:

Scale Degrees

The notes of Major and Minor scales have specific names, called Scale Degrees. They have both a number and a name.

The Scale Degree numbers are: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7


The names of the Scale Degrees are:

1. Tonic
2. Supertonic
3. Mediant
4. Subdominant
5. Dominant
6. Submediant
7. Leading Tone

The Scale Degrees have these names for a reason. The names relate to their function and to their position to each other on the scale, for example the Tonic is the primary tone, the Subdominant is below the Dominant, and the Leading Tone "leads" to the Tonic.

When we alter a scale tone we can indicate this by adding a sharp, flat or natural symbol in front of its number. The sixth and seventh scale degrees of the Melodic Minor scale are good examples of altered tones.

The Octatonic Scale

The Octatonic Scale is a scale that has eight notes that is constructed from alternating half-steps (H) and whole-steps (W).

H-W-H-W-H-W-H-W

Here is an example of a octatonic scale starting on D:

An octatonic scale may also begin with a whole-step:

W-H-W-H-W-H-W-H 
 

These scales are also called diminished scales.

Learn about more Scales

The Whole-Tone Scale

A Whole-Tone Scale is a scale made entirely of whole-steps and has only six notes.

The pattern for a whole-tone scale is easy to remember because it consists only of whole-steps (W):

W-W-W-W-W-W

A whole-tone scale starting on D-flat:

Learn about more Scales

Pentatonic Scales

Pentatonic Scales are scales that have five notes. There are many possible Pentatonic scales but the most common ones are the "Major" Pentatonic and the "Minor" Pentatonic.

The "Major" Pentatonic scale has this interval pattern:

M2-M2-m3-M2-m3

The "Minor" Pentatonic scale has this interval pattern:

m3-M2-M2-m3-M2

If you play only the black keys of a keyboard you are playing a pentatonic scale.

Learn about more Scales

The Major Scale

A Major Scale is a scale that has the following pattern of whole-steps (W) and half-steps (H):

W-W-H-W-W-W-H

Here is a Major scale starting on E:

Learn about more Scales

All 12 Major Scales

Scales

Scales are collections of notes arranged in patterns of half-steps, whole-steps, or other intervals. Composers and improvisers use scales as pitch resources in their music. They choose specific scales and choose notes from those scales to form melodies and harmonies in their music.

An example of a scale is a Major Scale. A major scale has the following arrangement of half-steps (H) and whole-steps (W):

W-W-H-W-W-W-H

If we start this pattern on the note D we get a D Major scale: D, E, F-sharp, G, A, B, C-sharp, D.



This is just one of the many possible scales but all scales work in the same way.

List of Scales:

• Chromatic scale
• Major scale
• Minor scales
• Pentatonic scales
• Whole-tone scale
• Octatonic scale

The Chromatic Scale

A Chromatic Scale is a scale that is made of only half-steps (H):

H-H-H-H-H-H, etc.

The Chromatic Scale starting on D is: D, D-sharp, E, F, F-sharp, G, G-sharp, A, A-sharp, B, C, C-sharp, D. (If we choose to go down the scale we use flats instead: D, D-flat, C, B, B-flat, A, A-flat, G, G-flat, F, E, E-flat, D).

Learn about more Scales