In scales, we take C major as a main reference, it's easier to imagine. Imagine on a keyboard, 'C' is the 'do', or 1st. It then continues to 'D-E-F-G-A-B'. While looking to the black key, we notice that there are black key gap in between some two adjacent white keys. In this key, it's obvious that 'E-F & B-C' have no gaps in between.
- If there is a gap, we call it wholetone (WT).
- If there is not having any gap, we call in semitone (ST) .
For any major scale, it's ascending this way:
WT-WT-ST-WT-WT-WT-ST
To makes things easy, just imagine the black keys of piano, it's exactly the same.
So, what about minor? It's something like this:
WT-ST-WT-WT-ST-WT-WT
Observe it carefully, it's actually just a shift of the major scale. Hence, we can say that if you play C major scale, but start with A (the 6th note), it's the minor scale of that particular key, in this case, A minor scale:
A-B-C-D-E-F-G
Neither sharp nor flat occurs, it's just another identical C major scale, just that there is a shift.
Same thing applies to some basic jazz mode,
Dorian: starts with 2nd.
Phrygian : starts with 3rd
Lydian : starts with 4th
Mixolydian: starts with 5th
Aeolian: starts with 6th (another name for minor scale)
Locrian : starts with 7th.
Hope that it cures the curiosity on basic scale forming.
To makes things easy, just imagine the black keys of piano, it's exactly the same.
So, what about minor? It's something like this:
WT-ST-WT-WT-ST-WT-WT
Observe it carefully, it's actually just a shift of the major scale. Hence, we can say that if you play C major scale, but start with A (the 6th note), it's the minor scale of that particular key, in this case, A minor scale:
A-B-C-D-E-F-G
Neither sharp nor flat occurs, it's just another identical C major scale, just that there is a shift.
Same thing applies to some basic jazz mode,
Dorian: starts with 2nd.
Phrygian : starts with 3rd
Lydian : starts with 4th
Mixolydian: starts with 5th
Aeolian: starts with 6th (another name for minor scale)
Locrian : starts with 7th.
Hope that it cures the curiosity on basic scale forming.
5 comments:
let say, while playing F major pop song, what notes/modes to add,to improvise, in between the lines, in order to sound a bit jazzy ?
Actually, in my opinion, it should sound jazzy mainly because the chords used. If blend in a bit of tension notes, diminished augmented or tri-tones, it should sound jazzy.
The scales / modes are to make it harmony, not jazzy (probably, hehe).
For F key, basically, we use 2# and 5# to make it sound a bit blueish pop.
Maybe you can try out this,
F-G-G#-A-C-C#-D-F
Quite a number of pop songs use these to make 'em a bit blue/soul.
ok tks.
hi hangtee, since you know so thorough about scales and modes, :
do you think, you or any one can by now, continue to create and popularise new scales and modes?
if yes, I encourage you to create one, then can name them Hangtee modes or hangtee scales...
possible?
Hmm.. i think i'm still not so pro, lol!
There are still a lot more scales need to be learn, like those beebop scale, hmp 5 down scale ( i don't understand), lydian b7 etc..
Anyway, it's actually possible to create a new scale, since for every generation/era at different place, different scale are created and popularized. From bach till modern to rap, there are countless of scales generated to suits the respective music, just that only few are having significant change.
It's just like the revolution on physics as well (i think..), quantum physics breaks the rule, just like jazz did!
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