There are many different types of scales, but if you want to understand them better then this is a great way to do it. To begin with, there is the major scale. It was created in the 17th century by Johann Sebastian Bach and it has seven notes in total.
Then there is the minor scale which also dates back to the same period of time. This scale consists of six tones and four semitones. There is another form of scale called the pentatonic scale that uses five tones and three semitones.
And finally, there’s the chromatic scale. This involves a variety of different pitches being used together. For example, C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C can be considered part of this scale.
The other important aspect of music theory is the concept of harmony. And there are many different forms of harmonies such as chords, progressions, arpeggios and more. Another term related to music theory is the tonal system.
What Are Scales in Music?
Scales are a very important part of music theory. You may have heard them referred to as chords, but this isn’t exactly correct. Chords consist of notes played together. Scales, on the other hand, are just one note repeated throughout the song.
You might be wondering how many different kinds of scales there are. There are actually seven basic types. The first is major scale, followed by minor, augmented, diminished, half-whole tone, whole tone and melodic minor. Each of these scales can be used to create a variety of songs.
The Main Types Of Scales In Music Are:
Major
The general feeling of a major scale is “happy” or “positive emotions.”
As we discovered above the formula for a major scale is:
- W W H W W W H
For example if we start on an E and apply the formula we move up a W to F♯, up a W to G♯, up an H to A, up a W to B, up a W to C♯, up a W to D♯, up an H to E. This leaves us with the E major scale:
- E F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D♯ E
Minor
The general feeling of a minor scale is “sad” or “negative emotions.”
There are three types of minor scales – the natural, harmonic, and melodic. I go in more depth on the necessity for these three types in this post on major and minor scales. For this post I will just give the formulas.
Natural Minor
The natural minor scale formula uses the same sequence of intervals as the major scale formula, just with a different starting point. The formula is:
- W H W W H W W
So if we start on A and apply the formula we create:
- A B C D E F G A
(Notice these are the same notes as the C major scale!)
Harmonic Minor
The harmonic minor scale is like the natural minor scale, but the note before we reach the starting note again is sharped. So G becomes G♯ in the a harmonic minor scale.
The formula:
- W H W W H m3 H
The A harmonic minor scale:
- A B C D E F G♯ A
The harmonic minor scale sounds edgier than the natural minor scale. I think the funky m3 followed by a half steps creates more tension.
Melodic Minor
The melodic minor scale is one of the strangest. It is the natural minor scale when descending, but when ascending the two notes before the starting note are sharped.
The ascending formula:
- W H W W W W H = A B C D E F♯ G♯ A
Again, the descending notes are the same as the natural minor scale.
Modes
Like the major and minor scales the modes have 7 notes per octave. They even use the same order of notes – just with a different starting point. In fact, the major scale is a mode (the Ionian mode), and the natural minor scale is the Aeolian mode. I’ve listed their names, formulas, and mood I associate with each mode below.
| Name | Formula/example | Mood |
| Ionian (major scale) | W W H W W W H / C D E F G A B C | Happy |
| Dorian | W H W W W H W / D E F G A B C D | Melancholic |
| Phrygian | H W W W H W W / E F G A B C D E | Mysterious |
| Lydian | W W W H W W H / F G A B C D E F | Over-sweet |
| Mixolydian | W W H W W H W / G A B C D E F G | Content |
| Aeolian (minor scale) | W H W W H W W / A B C D E F G A | Sad |
| Locrian | H W W H W W W / B C D E F G A B | Bizarre |
Pentatonic
A pentatonic scale is any type of musical scale that contains five notes. The most popular form of this kind of music is blues, rock and roll, jazz, country, folk, gospel, bluegrass, classical, and many others. There are different kinds of pentatonic scales, but the one that you’re most likely to encounter when listening to a piece of music is the major pentatonic scale.
Pentatonic scales are made from five notes. To me they sound simple, and melodic. Many folk songs have melodies based on the pentatonic scale.
The classic example of a pentatonic scale are the black keys of a piano.
- G♭ A♭ B♭ D♭ E♭
This leads to the formula for the major pentatonic scale:
- M2 M2 m3 M2 m3
There is also a minor pentatonic scale and an example of it is:
- E♭ G♭ A♭ B♭ D♭
The formula is:
- m3 M2 M2 m3 M2
Whole-tone
The whole tone scale is composed of six notes. As you may have guessed this scale is composed entirely of whole steps.
Formula:
- W W W W W W
Example:
- C D E F# G# A #
Notice that this uses half the notes in an octave. There is only one other set of notes that creates a whole tone scale and that is:
- D♭ E♭ F G A B.
All whole tone scales use notes from one of these two groupings.
A whole tone is also known as an augmented unison. It’s the result of adding another note to the basic scale. In other words, if you add a C to the E, then that becomes a D. This creates a new sound, and so it’s referred to as a whole tone.
Chromatic
There is the chromatic scale. This is similar to the diatonic, but it includes two extra pitches. You can easily recognize a chromatic scale by the letter C.
Finally, we have the pentatonic. Pentatonic means five tones. It’s the easiest way to create melodies using the guitar. It also works well for creating chords, so you should definitely give this one a try.
In addition to the above scales, there is another type of scale that you might want to know about. That’s called the blues scale. Blues is actually a combination of both the pentatonics and the chromatics.