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Forums :: Ask Instructor David Barrett

F#,C#,G# Major Diatonic Scales

2 replies [Last post]
Tue, 06/30/2015 - 19:43
BISCUIT BOY
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Joined: 12/14/2013

How can these scales contain E# and B# notes that dont exist on the chromatic scale? Am I just way behind the curve or what?

Thanks! Biscuit Boy in Petaluma

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Wed, 07/01/2015 - 07:15
#1
timeistight
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Joined: 11/27/2012
Enharmonic equivalents

B# is an enarmonic equivalent (i.e., another name for) C; E# is an enarmonic equivalent of F.

You use those notes when spelling a C# major scale to avoid duplicating letters.

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Wed, 07/01/2015 - 07:16
#2
David Barrett
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ExpertHead InstructorTeacher 10Level 10
Joined: 12/20/2009
Good morning Biscuit Boy. The

Good morning Biscuit Boy. The key thing to focus on is that you can't use the same note name twice in a structural scale, otherwise analysis of both the melody and chords gets messed up.

For example...

The C# Major Scale is C# D# E# F# G# etc...

If you spell the C# scale as C# D# F F# G# you achieve the same pitches, but watch what happens to your analysis.

In the first scale you have C# D# E# F# G# and the scale degrees would be 1 2 3 4 5. The second version you get 1 2 b4 (flat-4) 4 5. The "F" designation is ONLY designated as the 4th Scale Degree, so an F is analyzed as a b4, which changes the understanding of that sequence of notes dramatically.

The same applies for a chord. The I Chord (one chord) should be C# E# G#... but it would be C# F G# the other way, again, instead of being 1 3 5 (root, 3rd and 5th) you get 1 b4 5 (root, flat-4 and 5th) which would make a musician think that there's something special happening there... some sort of an inverted substitution chord.

So, simply put, a sharp raises a note... F# is a half step higher than F. F## is two half steps higher than F (equivalent to G). Naming conventions are strict so that when looking at a melody or chord, you understand what's happening sequentially in that specific key. As a musician you know that F## is the G key, so on the piano you will play G and all is well. There is a little bit of translating to be done, but it's part of the art.

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