What is Scale?
Also called: musical scale
A scale is a set of notes arranged in order of pitch, defined by the pattern of steps between them. The scale a song uses gives it its sound, such as the brightness of major or the darker color of minor.
The major scale follows the pattern whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half, where a whole step is two semitones and a half step is one. From C, that gives C D E F G A B. The natural minor scale uses whole, half, whole, whole, half, whole, whole, which from A gives A B C D E F G.
Other common scales include harmonic and melodic minor, the modes such as Dorian and Mixolydian, the five note pentatonic scales, and the blues scale. Each has its own pattern and character.
Knowing the scale of a song shows you which notes you can use for melodies, bass lines and solos without sounding out of key.
Put it to work
Pick a root and a scale to see its notes, chords and relative keys.
Scale and Chord Finder