Other Scales
While the major and minor scales are very common, there are other scales that you should study. Much of your studies will be on Western music, but composers sometimes borrowed ideas of exotic scales from the non-Western world. Debussy, for example, was influenced by exotic scales from different non-Western cultures and would try to incorporate that sound in his music. I find it easiest to compare these types of scales with a major or minor scale, but it's very important to realize that this is only a learning strategy and that a major or minor scale has a different function than other scales.
The pentatonic scale is made up of five tones. It contains intervals of more than a step between adjacent pitches, which makes it a type of a gapped scale. In this scale there are no half steps. It is easy to think of this scale in terms of a major or natural minor scale. For example, below you will see a pentatonic scale starting on C. The C major scale is C D E F G A B C. Half steps in the major scale are between E and F, and B and C. It is where these two half steps are that you create the gaps. By taking out the F and the B, a pentatonic scale is created (C D E G A). The added C at the top is to only show the octave and would begin the second octave of the scale. This pentatonic scale could have been made with a different arrangement. Instead of the F being removed from the E to F half step, the E could have been removed and the F could stay. That would make the scale be spelt as C D F G A. There are still no half steps, the gap is just placed in a different spot.
The pentatonic scale is made up of five tones. It contains intervals of more than a step between adjacent pitches, which makes it a type of a gapped scale. In this scale there are no half steps. It is easy to think of this scale in terms of a major or natural minor scale. For example, below you will see a pentatonic scale starting on C. The C major scale is C D E F G A B C. Half steps in the major scale are between E and F, and B and C. It is where these two half steps are that you create the gaps. By taking out the F and the B, a pentatonic scale is created (C D E G A). The added C at the top is to only show the octave and would begin the second octave of the scale. This pentatonic scale could have been made with a different arrangement. Instead of the F being removed from the E to F half step, the E could have been removed and the F could stay. That would make the scale be spelt as C D F G A. There are still no half steps, the gap is just placed in a different spot.
Below, the pentatonic scale is based off a minor scale. A minor has no sharps or flats so it is spelt as A B C D E F G A. The half steps are in between B and C, and E and F. In the example below, the B and F are removed. Just as I said with the pentatonic scale based on the major scale, the gaps can be rearranged in this example. The scale could be changed to A B D E G, A B D E F G, or A C D F G.
A nondiatonic scale is a scale that does not have the regular interval sequence like the major, minor, and pentatonic scale. These scales often have no identifiable tonic. The different types of nondiatonic scales are listed below.
Chromatic scales are made up of all 12 tones within an octave. If you were to sit at a piano and play all the keys in between a C4 and a C5, including the black keys, you would be playing a chromatic scale. Since every tone is the same interval away from tone before and after (a half step), chromatic scales have no tonic. This can be confusing because teachers will sometimes ask you to play a C chromatic scale, but this is only telling you the pitch to start on, not the tonic. You'll notice that in the image below that the ascending scale has sharps and the descending scale has flats. This is the typical notation for chromatic scales.
Chromatic scales are made up of all 12 tones within an octave. If you were to sit at a piano and play all the keys in between a C4 and a C5, including the black keys, you would be playing a chromatic scale. Since every tone is the same interval away from tone before and after (a half step), chromatic scales have no tonic. This can be confusing because teachers will sometimes ask you to play a C chromatic scale, but this is only telling you the pitch to start on, not the tonic. You'll notice that in the image below that the ascending scale has sharps and the descending scale has flats. This is the typical notation for chromatic scales.
There is a slight exception to the chromatic scale. A melody can have many accidentals within it, and all twelve tones of the chromatic scale can appear. However, if the melody is based on a regular diatonic scale, it maintains its tonal characteristics. One explanation for this is chromatic harmony.
Whole-tone scales are made up of six tones. These scales are easy to remember by their name because they are entirely made up of whole tones. A whole-tone scale starts on any pitch and moves up towards the octave by whole steps. The image below shows a whole-tone scale starting on C. This does not mean that the tonic is C, but only that it is a pitch to start on. By going up from C4 to C5 by whole steps you get C D E F# G# A# (C). The C up the octave is not part of the six notes in the scale, just like in the pentatonic scale example. Notice how all of the letter names between C4 and C5 are present except for B. This is because B to C is a half step. The B cannot be altered to make a whole step between B and C, therefore, it is dropped from the scale. Whole-tone scales can start on any pitch within the 12 pitches in an octave, just make sure that each pitch is separated by a whole step and that there are only six pitches in your scale.
Whole-tone scales are made up of six tones. These scales are easy to remember by their name because they are entirely made up of whole tones. A whole-tone scale starts on any pitch and moves up towards the octave by whole steps. The image below shows a whole-tone scale starting on C. This does not mean that the tonic is C, but only that it is a pitch to start on. By going up from C4 to C5 by whole steps you get C D E F# G# A# (C). The C up the octave is not part of the six notes in the scale, just like in the pentatonic scale example. Notice how all of the letter names between C4 and C5 are present except for B. This is because B to C is a half step. The B cannot be altered to make a whole step between B and C, therefore, it is dropped from the scale. Whole-tone scales can start on any pitch within the 12 pitches in an octave, just make sure that each pitch is separated by a whole step and that there are only six pitches in your scale.
The blues scale is a variation on the major scale by using chromatic pitches. In blues the third (mediant) and seventh (leading tone) are played flatted or in their natural state. When the tones are flatted it means they are lowered by a half step from what they appear as in the major scale. It does not necessarily mean that a flat accidental has been placed next to it, only that it has been lowered a half step. Being played in their natural state means the pitches are not altered and are the same that appear in the major scale. It is the alternating between the altered tones and the natural tones that makes the blues sound.
As you can see in the image, a blues scale starting on C can be spelt as C D (Eb) E F G A (Bb) B C. Just like all of the other scales, it can start on any pitch as long as the correct half and whole steps are in the right place.
Octatonic or Dimished scales are truly eight note scales. I say truly because the eighth note is not the repeated starting pitch up an octave. This scale is created by alternating half and whole steps. Obviously the name octatonic refers to the eight notes, so what does diminished refer to? The reason why this scale is also called diminished is because the chords it creates are diminished. Diminished chords are discussed here. Because of the diminished quality of this scale, it lends itself well to set theory and is seen in a lot of Bela Bartok's works.
Octatonic or Dimished scales are truly eight note scales. I say truly because the eighth note is not the repeated starting pitch up an octave. This scale is created by alternating half and whole steps. Obviously the name octatonic refers to the eight notes, so what does diminished refer to? The reason why this scale is also called diminished is because the chords it creates are diminished. Diminished chords are discussed here. Because of the diminished quality of this scale, it lends itself well to set theory and is seen in a lot of Bela Bartok's works.
Because of the nature of octatonic scales, they are often spelt with enharmonics within the music. For example, the Eb in the example above could be spelt as a D#. Just because the accidental and letter name changed, the half step interval is still the same. Just as the other scales, it can start on any pitch.
There are many non-traditional and non-western scales that have unique sounds (Indian music contains a quarter tone, making it a smaller distance between notes than the western half step), but for Western music studies, the scales that I've discussed are what will appear most often in your studies.
Discussion on church modes are here.
There are many non-traditional and non-western scales that have unique sounds (Indian music contains a quarter tone, making it a smaller distance between notes than the western half step), but for Western music studies, the scales that I've discussed are what will appear most often in your studies.
Discussion on church modes are here.