Interval Pattern: T-T-S-T-T-T-S / W-W-H-W-W-W-H.When descending, the reverse is true, with the middle finger crossing over the thumb to play the sixth note. In the case of the C major scale, the first three notes are played with thumb, index and middle finger respectively, after which your thumb should pass under to play the fourth note, followed by all remaining fingers in turn. The correct fingering for a scale is important - it may sound obvious, but when playing eight notes with only four fingers and a thumb, putting the right fingers on the right keys makes things much easier to cover the whole scale from the outset. If you start on a C note anywhere on your keyboard and play all the white notes going up to the next C, you’ve just played a one-octave C major scale. The major scale, in particular the C major scale, is the most common starting point for beginners to learn and practice, largely because of the fact that it’s made up of the white notes on the keyboard, making it easy to memorise. In the notes for each scale in this article T = tone, S = semitone, W = whole step, H = half step We’ve included a short video clip of how each scale should look and sound, a diagram of the notes involved, each scale’s interval pattern and a guide to the most effective fingering for each. So, listed below are the most commonly used scales that represent the best starting points for new players to use when practising, whether you’ve just purchased yourself a new beginner keyboard or a fancy digital piano. So if you start from a C note and play the set pattern of intervals for a major scale, you’ll be playing a C major scale. A scale is just a predetermined sequence of consecutive notes with a particular pattern of intervals between them, and the note that the scale starts from is known as the root note of the scale. Alternatively, the interval between the notes E and F is one semitone, or a half tone. For example, the interval between the notes C and D is two semitones, or a whole tone.

When you play any two notes on a piano keyboard, there will be a difference in pitch between them known as an interval.

12 major scales piano pdf