Playing Piano Scales

Playing Piano Scales
Hi my name is Omri and today we are going to talk about Major scales in general. We talked about the C Major scale as starting from C and playing all the white keys up to the next C. That is one Octave of this scale. Now C Major has a certain sound quality to it that we define as Major. Some people say it sounds a little bit happier or kind of neutral. To play other major scales we don’t have to play the same notes as in the C Major scale. What makes C Major sound Major is the combination of intervals; meaning when we go from C the next note is going to be a whole step away; meaning two half steps. A half step is just the very next note and a whole step is two notes away; regardless of whether they are black or white keys. So we play a whole step and then another whole step from there, then a half step the very next note, then a whole step, whole step, whole step, and finally a half step at the end. So the pattern is whole step, whole step, half step, whole step, whole step, whole step, half step. And that is the same combination for any major scale. So for example, I can even start on F sharp so long as I stick to the pattern I’ll be able to figure out the Major scale that begins on F sharp. So I go a whole step, a whole step, a half step, a whole step, whole step, whole step, and then a half step. And that has the same sound quality as all other major scales. When we play Minor scales the same rule applies. The intervals, the combination of intervals in a natural Minor scale is a whole step, a half step, a whole step, whole step, half step, whole step, and whole step. I can start on any other note and still play a natural Minor scale. For example if I start on E, I go whole step, half step, whole step, whole step, half step, whole step, whole step. The only thing you have to remember is that when you are stepping a half step is the very next note whether it is white or black and a whole step is just two half steps. So if I go from C to D I took a whole step. If I go from B to C sharp I’ve gone a whole step because it is two half steps.