How many major scales are there?

Twelve that sound different, one starting on each key of the octave. Written down there are fifteen, because three of them can be spelled two ways.

What is the difference between a major and a minor scale?

Mostly the third note. In major it is two whole steps above the start, in minor a step and a half, and that one note is most of why major sounds bright and minor darker. The natural minor also lowers the sixth and seventh.

What is the major scale formula in half steps?

2-2-1-2-2-2-1: whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half, which adds up to 12, one octave. Counted from the first note, the scale’s notes sit 0, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, and 11 half steps up.

Major Scale: Formula, Notes and All 12 Keys

A major scale climbs from a note to the same note an octave up in the pattern whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half. Start that pattern on any key and you get that key’s major scale.

What is the major scale formula?

Every major scale is built from two step sizes. A half step is the distance from one key to the very next, black or white; a whole step is two half steps. The major scale climbs whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half, and it is that order, not the starting note, that makes it sound major.

C major uses only white keys: the pattern fits them exactly from C to C.

The same scale on the staff. Its two half steps are E–F and B–C: between the 3rd and 4th notes and between the 7th and 8th.

How do you build a major scale on any note?

Start on the note you want and apply the pattern. From G: a whole step to A, a whole step to B, a half step to C, whole steps to D and E, and the next whole step lands on a black key, F♯, before the last half step home to G. Every letter appears once, which is why that key is F♯ here and not G♭.

G major: the pattern needs one black key, F♯.

The notes of all 12 major scales

Key	Sharps or flats	Notes
C major	0	C D E F G A B
G major	1♯	G A B C D E F♯
D major	2♯	D E F♯ G A B C♯
A major	3♯	A B C♯ D E F♯ G♯
E major	4♯	E F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D♯
B major	5♯	B C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A♯
F♯ major	6♯	F♯ G♯ A♯ B C♯ D♯ E♯
D♭ major	5♭	D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ C
A♭ major	4♭	A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G
E♭ major	3♭	E♭ F G A♭ B♭ C D
B♭ major	2♭	B♭ C D E♭ F G A
F major	1♭	F G A B♭ C D E

The sharps or flats a scale needs are its key signature. Read down the table and each key is a fifth above the one before it (after F♯, D♭ stands in for C♯): the sharps grow one at a time to six at F♯, then the flats take over at five and fall one at a time to one at F. That is the order of the circle of fifths.

What are the notes of the scale called?

Degree	Name	In C
1	Tonic	C
2	Supertonic	D
3	Mediant	E
4	Subdominant	F
5	Dominant	G
6	Submediant	A
7	Leading tone	B

Major scale