The hidden power of Modes

Click here for the general overview

In the previous Pomodoro, we learned quite some stuff :

1. A scale or key is called “major” or “minor” solely on the ground of it’s third ! If the third is major (2 steps), then the whole scale or key is major. If it’s minor (1 + 1/2 steps), then the whole scale or key is minor.
2. There are 3 minor scales :
   1. The natural or relative minor scale, which is the ordinary diatonic scale, but starting from the 6th note.
   2. The harmonic minor scale, which is the natural minor, but with the 7th note raised. This scale is used in jazz only for making chords in minor keys.
   3. The melodic minor scale, which is the same as the major key of the same root, but with it’s 3rd lowered from major to minor.
3. The natural or relative minor scale is used to determine in which key a piece of music is written. Thus, the key signature of a song can signify a major key, or the relative minor key. E.g. 2 flats means : the key of Bb major OR G minor !

So, the relative minor key plays an important role. And as we know, the relative minor key is just the diatonic scale starting from the 6th note as being the root.

That’s why there are discussions about this “scale”. Some people say that the relative minor is not a scale on its own, but only a derivative – or mode - of the major diatonic scale. Other people will argue that the relative minor is a scale in its own right, because it uses another pattern than the major diatonic scale, in other words : it stacks the tones and half-tones differently.

It’s certainly not up to me to decide who’s right or wrong (it’s a matter of semantics anyway). The only important thing to remember is that you can start the diatonic scale on any of its notes as the root, and that this is called a mode.

Since there are 7 notes, there are also 7 modes. Each mode has its own name, and will be either major or minor according to its 3rd interval. Just a warning ahead : the names are a bit strange ! (source : Wikipedia)

Name	Starting from note	Example in the key of C	Particularity
Ionian	1	C – D – E – F – G – A – B – C	this is the “normal” major key
Dorian	2	D – E – F – G – A – B – C – D
Phrygian	3	E – F – G – A – B – C – D – E
Lydian	4	F – G – A – B – C – D – E – F
Myxolydian	5	G – A – B – C – D – E – F – G
Aeolian	6	A – B – C – D – E – F – G – A	this is the relative minor key
Locrian	7	B – C – D – E – F – G – A – B

So, let’s try an example in another key. What notes would you play in the Lydian mode in the key of D ?

Think about it for a minute (and write it down) before you read the answer below…

Well, the key of D is : D – E – F# – G – A – B – C# – D
The Lydian mode takes the 4th note as root, which is G.
So, the Lydian mode in the key of D is : G – A – B – C# – D – E – F# – G

Do you want another one ? Ok, how about this : the Dorian mode in the key of G ?

Answer : A – B – C – D – E – F# – G – A. Why ? The Dorian mode start on the 2nd note, which is A in the key of G. And since we are in the key of G, we must play F#.

Now, the first question you probably ask yourself, and it’s a very pertinent one, is : what is the use of modes ?

To be honest, I’m a bit confused myself on the subject. For me however, they serve 2 purposes : a harmonic and a melodic one.

As far as the harmonic use is concerned, modes will come in very handy when we’ll start talking about building chords in the next Pomodoros. Indeed, you can see them as “chord-specific scales”.

On the melodic field, I’m a little less confident. So far, I used them to look for variations for melodies or solos. I’ll explain that a bit later, so please just read on, and I think you’ll find lots of fun using modes.

First, let’s look at another important question. And that is whether the mode is major or minor. As we know, a scale or key, is major or minor depending on its major or minor third. The same goes for a mode.

Let’s take the key of C as an example (see table above).

The Ionian mode is the “normal” key with the interval C – E as the third. It’s a major third, so the Ionian mode is a major mode. This comes as no surprise, because it is the major key !

The Dorian mode is a minor mode, because the interval D – F is a minor third.

The Phrygian mode is also a minor mode, because of the minor third E – G.

And so on and so forth. Try to figure out for all the modes if they are major and minor yourself before you read the answer below :

Mode	Major/minor
Ionian	Major
Dorian	Minor
Phrygian	Minor
Lydian	Major
Myxolydian	Major
Aeolian	Minor (of course ! It’s the relative minor !)
Locrian	Minor (diminished)

The major/minor characteristic of a mode is NOT dependent of the key ! For instance, the Lydian mode (mode IV) will always be major, in the key of C, G, Bb, or any other key !

So, modes I, IV and V are major, and II, III, VI and VII are minor. (Lame joke alert : the majority of modes is minor). The VII mode, Locrian, is even more than minor, it’s diminished, but we’ll talk about that in the next Pomodoro.

Now, before we see how we can use modes to look for variations in melodies or solos, there’s a last point, and that’s the “lingo” musicians use.

As a shorthand, musicians will say “G Lydian”. What they mean is : play the Lydian mode, with G as the root of the mode. Since Lydian is the 4th mode, we know that G must be the fourth note in the major scale. That major key can only be D (there are no other keys with G as the 4th note !). That means that you play : G – A – B – C# – D – E – F# – G. (The key of D has 2 sharps : F# and C#).

What they DON’T mean with “G Lydian” is : play the Lydian mode of the key of G. The 4th note in the key of G is C. That would give : C – D – E – F# – G – A – B – C. Totally different !

Now that we gathered all this knowledge, let’s start applying it. Like I said, my experience with modes is limited, so far I only used it to experiment and find variations for melodies or solos. But it is fun ! Let’s take the example of “Happy Birthday”.

This is the normal version (in the key of C) :

In order to find a variation, in the first complete bar, in stead of playing C Ionian (the “normal” major mode), you could play C Myxolydian. Since Myxolydian means starting from the 5th note, we have to look for the key in which C is the 5th note, which is the key of F. The key of F has 1 flat note : Bb. So, you could play this :

I changed only 1 note : the 3rd note in the first bar. In stead of the plain root C, I changed into a more colorful Bb, which comes from the Myxolydian mode.

If you play this, and you listen carefully, this tiny variation asks for another change : the 3rd note of the 3rd bar. There you can change the D in B :

No, you didn’t use another mode, you stayed in the Ionian mode.

But what we get here is a “chromatic” pattern as the transition between 2 bars : from bar 1 to bar 2 we use Bb – B, which is a half-step distance. And from bar 3 to bar 4 we use B – C, again a half-step distance. Using half-step patterns like this (upwards or downwards) is called “chromatic”, because the chromatic scale consists of only half steps !

Wow, all this because I changed only 1 little note using a different mode ! That is indeed the melodic power of modes.

But why did I choose the Myxolydian mode, and not any other ?

Well, like I said, my experience is limited. What I do is switch a major mode for a major mode, and a minor for a minor. Let me explain with the example above. The first bar is in a major mode : Ionian, the normal major key. So I have only 2 other major modes I can use : the Lydian and the Myxolydian. There were a couple of choices available : changing the G to F# (Lydian mode), the A to a Bb (Myxolydian mode) or changing the C to Bb (also Myxolydian mode). I tried them all, and it was the last variation that sounded best to me. Like I said : lots of fun !

Being a bluegrass banjo player, my experience so far is limited to major modes, but jazz musicians use the minor modes a lot. And that shouldn’t come as a surprise : with 3 minor scales, and 4 minor modes to choose from, it almost seems you can’t play a wrong note in minor !

Now, the last bit of this extra-long Pomodoro is how you can easily learn the various modes. If you see “D Dorian”, how do you know practically instantly what notes are involved ?

Well, you could do the arithmetic as we did above several times. But I use an mnemonic, called LIMDAPL. This mnemonic is based on the fact that for the same root, there’s only 1 note that changes per mode. The modes are ordered from the “most major” to the “most minor” :

Mode	Example with root C	Change in relation to Ionian (“normal” major)
Lydian	C – D – E – F# – G – A – B – C	augmented 4
Ionian	C – D – E – F – G – A – B – C	--
Myxolydian	C – D – E – F – G – A – Bb – C	dropped 7
Dorian	C – D – Eb – F – G – A – Bb – C	dropped 7, dropped 3
Aeolian	C – D – Eb – F – G – Ab – Bb – C	dropped 7, dropped 3, dropped 6
Phrygian	C – Db – Eb – F – G – Ab – Bb – C	dropped 7, dropped 3, dropped 6, dropped 2
Locrian	C – Db – Eb – F – Gb – Ab – Bb – C	dropped 7, dropped 3, dropped 6, dropped 2, dropped 5

If you take the first letter of the modes, you get the acronym “LIMDAPL”. But more importantly, you can use this to immediately figure out what notes you have to play. Say for example “A Dorian”.

The normal Ionian mode would be : A – B – C# – D – E – F# – G# – A.

But with Dorian mode I know : dropped 7, dropped 3.

So that makes : A – B – C – D – E – F# – G – A.

That’s why some teachers will insist that you don’t only practice the “normal” scale on your instrument, but also the modes for the same root (e.g. C Lydian, C Ionian, C Myxolydian, C Dorian, C Aeolian, C Phrygian, C Locrian) to get them into your “muscle memory”.

Well, this is all I know about modes. I’m pretty sure there are other areas in which you can use them, but I haven’t explored them yet. If I ever do, I’ll make sure to brag blog about it !

In the next Pomodoro, we will make use of the modes to build chords. I promise, it will be a much more simple topic !

Minor keys and scales

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In Pomodoro 5 and Pomodoro 6, we learned about building keys in the diatonic scale, using the Circle Of Fifths and the Circle Of Fourths.

What I didn’t say then was that we were building major keys. In this Pomodoro we will see how to build minor keys.

First, let us establish what we mean with a major and minor key.

And to do that, I need to talk about intervals.An interval is the audible distance between any two notes. If you play a D (4th string) and then a B (2nd string), you’ll hear a distance between them, in this case a sixth. Then, if you play G (3rd string) and then E (1st string), the notes are different, but their relative distance, the interval, remains the same : a sixth.

Hearing the intervals between notes is a fantastic and indispensable tool if you want to play music, and there are plenty of software programs available on the Internet that you can use to train your ears.

Let’s start with the easy part : finding the name of the interval. To find it, you just count the notes that span the interval and you make it an adjective. It doesn’t matter in what order you count : ascending or descending. It also does not matter if the note is sharp or flat.

• The interval between 2 adjacent notes, is called a second (2nd). E.g from C to D, from G# to F#, from D# to E, from Bb to A.
• 2 notes with 1 note in between is a third (3rd). E.g. from E to G, from F# to D, from Ab to F, from B to D.
• 2 notes with 2 notes in between : a fourth (4t). E.g. from G# to C.
• 2 notes with 3 notes in between : a fifth (5th). E.g. from Db to G.
• 2 notes with 4 notes in between : a sixth (6th). E.g. from Gb to Eb.
• 2 notes with 5 notes in between : a seventh (7th). E.g. from C to B.
• 2 notes with 6 notes in between : the octave ! E.g. from C to high C.

and you can go even further with 2 octaves :

• 2 notes with 7 notes in between : a ninth (9th), e.g. from C to high D.
• etc…

(Little secret : to find the name of the interval, I just count on my fingers from one note to another : e.g. from F# to C : F(1) – G(2) – A(3) – B(4) – C = 5 ! So, it’s a fifth ! Notice that I didn’t even bother to take the # into account.)

But all these intervals come with “flavors”. That’s where it’s becoming a bit more difficult, because you do have to take into account all the possibilities. For example : from C to D is a second, and it’s a whole tone apart (2 frets). But from B to C is also a second, but it’s only a half step ! Such a second is called a “minor second”.

I’m not going into details here. If you want to know all the possible intervals, here’s a list (source Wikipedia).

But there is ONE interval that is important to make the distinction.

That interval is the third. Here, you have to make the distinction between a major third, which is 2 steps, and a minor third, which is 1 + 1/2  steps. For example, C – E is a major third (2 steps), but D – F is a minor third (1 + 1/2 steps).

Why is it so important ? Because the third determines the entire “mood” of the key, and thus the song that is written in it ! This interval is so important, that the whole key is called “major” or “minor” according to it !

A major third evokes a happy, optimistic mood, and a minor third a sad, melancholic mood. Wanna hear for yourself ? Well, first, play this major version of “Frère Jacques” in the key of C (no flats or sharps in the key signature) :

Now, play it in minor :

Quite a difference, isn’t there ?

What changed ? Well, in the key of C, the third is E. The only thing that changed was going from the major third E (2 steps) to a minor third Eb (1 step + 1/2 step). This small change makes a whole lot of difference.

So far so good. Now, the bad news. Until now, we’ve seen only 1 major scale, which is the diatonic scale. But there are 3 minor scales.

The first is an easy one, because it’s really the diatonic scale, but starting from another root : the 6th note. So if you start playing the diatonic scale in the key of C, but starting from A (which is the 6th), then you’ll have the A minor scale : A – B – C – D – E – F – G – A. It’s a minor key because it has a minor third A – C.

Another example : in the key of G, the 6th is the E. So, the key of E-minor is :
E – F# – G – A – B – C – D – E.
Why F# ? because the key of G was our base !

I suggest you try some other keys, starting from the 6th note. For instance, what notes would you play in D minor ?

Try to find them on the guitar, I’ll wait a minute…

The answer is : D – E – F – G – A – Bb – C – D. Why Bb ? Because D is the 6th note in the major key of F, and in that key we play Bb !

Because this minor scale is so intertwined with the major diatonic scale, it is called the “relative” or the “natural” minor scale. Moreover, those two scales share the same key signature !

This is really important ! We talked about key signatures, and how we can use them to deduce the key in which the song is written. But in fact, there are always 2 keys linked to it : the major and the minor relative key.

So, if there are no sharp or flats, the song is either in C major or A minor ! Another example : if the key signature is 2 sharps, you’re either in D major or B minor. If the key signature is three flats, then the key is Eb major or C minor. Mind boggling, isn’t it ?

So, how do you know if the song is major or minor ? Well, you don’t. Not by the key signature anyway. A good tip is to look to the end note. If it’s the 1st, 3rd or 5th note of the major key, it’s probably major. If it’s the 6th, it’s probably minor. But the whole “feel” of the song should tell you.

Another interesting little fact is that the natural or relative minor scale is very much used in medieval music. In fact, the notes A – B – C – D – E – F – G suggest that the first scale ever written down was probably the natural minor key.

Okay, let’s move on to the second of the three minor scales. This one is called the “harmonic” minor scale, and it’s only used for, well making harmonics, or chords if you like. The harmonic minor scale is almost exactly like the relative minor scale, but the 7th note is raised.

So, if you take the natural A minor : A – B – C – D – E – F – G – A

The harmonic minor scale would be : A – B – C – D – E – F – G# – A

If you play this scale, you’ll have an “eastern” feel to it, because of the unusual interval of 1+1/2 step between the 6th and the 7th note.

Unless you’re a jazz musician who wants to build chords in minor scales, you shouldn’t pay too much attention to this scale.

The third scale is a bit more interesting for singers. It’s called the “melodic” minor scale, and it has not only the 7th but also the 6th note raised. So in A minor this gives :
A – B – C – D – E – F# – G# – A.

This melodic minor scale is quite close to the major scale of the same root. The only difference is the minor third in stead of the major third. Indeed, for instance the major key of A has 3 sharp notes : F# – C# – G#. In the example above, we detect the F# and the G#, but the major third C# has become the minor third C.

This scale is called melodic, because singers like to stick to the easy “sing-able” notes of the major key, even if the song is in minor.

In reality however, if you listen to songs in minor keys, especially in jazz, you‘ll find that soloists use all three minor scales to develop their solos, often intermixed.

And they’re using a fourth way of getting minor (and major) scales. That fourth way is modes. We’ll talk about them in our next Pomodoro.

Building even more keys in the diatonic scale

Click here for the general overview

In the previous blog, we discovered the Circle Of Fifths, and how use it to build other keys in the diatonic scale, by adding sharp notes, starting with F# :

• F# : key of G
• F# + C# : key of D
• F# + C# + G# : key of A
• F# + C# + G# + D# : key of E

Another way to look at the Circle of Fifths is that you add tetrachords (the miniscales of which the diatonic scale is made) to the “right” of the 2 original tetrachords of the key of C :

So, the 2nd mini-scale in the key of C acted as the 1st mini-scale in the key of G, etc..

But what if we reversed the direction ? What if we took the 1st mini-scale in the key of C and let it act as the 2nd key of another key ? In other words, what if we build the tetrachords to the “left” of the original key of C ?

Well, let’s try that. Below you’ll find the diatonic pattern we’re looking for, and the 1st tetrachord in the key of C acting as the 2nd tetrachord in the other key :

First question : in what key are we here ? Well, as we know from the definition “a scale is a pattern to go from the root note to the octave”, and the octave is F in this case, then the root note is also F, so we are in the key of F !

Ok, now we know that, let’s fill in the notes, and see if they fit !

OMG, they don’t fit at all ! At first sight, it seems impossible to build the diatonic scale this way. Well, don’t despair just yet, let’s have a closer look. The 2nd mini-scale is ok, and that’s because it’s the 1st tetrachord of the original key of C.

But then, the 1st mini-scale has 3 whole steps in stead of 1+1+1/2, and the connecting interval between notes 4 and 5 is only half a step in stead of a whole step.

But isn’t the connecting interval the real problem here ? If we lower the B half a step, making it B-flat or Bb, then not only the correct interval is restored, but we got a correct 1st mini-scale as well ! So, here’s the corrected diagram :

So, we come to the conclusion that in the diatonic scale, the key of F has 1 flat note : Bb. Put even more strongly : there is only 1 key which has 1 flat note. That key will be F, and the flat note will be Bb.

Ok, now that we have the diatonic scale back, how about repeating the same process to the left, and using the 1st mini-scale as the second mini-scale in search of the next key.

Again the first question is : in what key are we in. And looking at the octave the answer is : Bb.(BTW this is the 4th note in the key of F, as was F in the key of C).

Ok, let’s fill in the missing notes :

Just as with building mini-scales to the right (Circle Of Fifths), this method of building to the left also reveals an ever recurring problem. It’s situated in the connecting interval. Indeed, between E and F there is only half a step difference, but the scale requires a whole step. And again, the solution is simple : we only have to lower the E by half a step, resulting in Eb, to have the problem fixed :

So, now we have 2 flat notes : Bb (from the key of F), an Eb in the key of Bb. Or put more strongly : there is only 1 key with 2 flat notes, and that is the key of Bb. Those flat notes are : Bb and Eb.

I think, with all the practice that you have building keys in the previous blog, and with the above examples, you should be able to answer the following questions :

• What would be the next key that you build ?
• Where do you expect to run into a problem ?
• How do you think you would solve that problem ?
• And last question : how many flat notes do you expect that key to have ?

Think about those questions for a while before reading the answers below.

Well, the next key I would build is the key of Eb. Why ? Because it’s the 4th note of the current key, which is Bb. I would expect to have a problem in the connecting interval (between the 4th and the 5th note). Indeed between A and Bb, there is only half a step difference, but it should be a whole step. The solution is to lower the 4th note from A to Ab. My conclusion would be : there is only 1 key with 3 flat notes. That key is Eb, and the 3 flat notes are : Bb, Eb, and Ab.

And again, you could continue building other keys “to the left”, that comes down to using the 4th note as the root. That’s why this process is called the “Circle Of Fourths”.

You may be wondering what is the use of building keys in Bb or Eb or Ab. Aren’t the keys of C, G, D, A and E enough ?

Well, like I said in the previous blog, when you are playing folk or bluegrass music, they probably are. But the “flat” keys are the realm of jazz !

Why ? Very simple : brass wind instruments are for the most part tuned in those flat keys ! And since these instruments are used a lot in jazz, it’s obvious that songs would be written in those keys.

Conclusions

I think it’s time for some conclusions.

A. Getting the key

• If there no sharp or flat notes, then you’re in the key of C.
• Sharp notes always start with F#, and you continue adding 5ths to it :
  • F# : key of G
  • F# + C# : key of D
  • F# + C# + G# : key of A
  • etc.
• Flat notes always start with Bb, and you continue adding 4ths to it :
  • Bb : key of F
  • Bb + Eb : key of Bb
  • Bb + Eb + Ab : key of Eb
  • etc.

Try to find a mnemonic that helps you remembering those rules quickly. I have such a mnemonic, but I won’t tell you, because it’s better that you find your own !

B. A flat note is not a sharp note !

Like I mentioned in the previous blog, a sharp note and a flat note can sound the same, but by no means they are the same !

Take for instance Db. It sounds the same as C#, but the two notes have a whole different function. The first time you encounter a C#, it acts as the 7th note in the key of D. The first time you encounter Db, it acts as the 4th note in the key of Ab. You will quite agree with me that those are totally different keys !

Another thing to notice : a key has either sharp notes, or flat notes. Not both !

C. Key signature

When you look at a music sheet, in many cases you will see the “key signature”. A bunch of sharp or flats at the beginning of each line of the sheet.

The key signature serves 2 purposes. First, it tells you what key to use. So, if there isn’t one, you know you’re in the key of C. Otherwise, look at the sharps or flats, and you know it what key the song is written. In the example above, the piece is in the key of …. well, I’ll let you figure it out !

The second purpose of the key signature is to make life easier for musicians, more particularly composers. In stead of decorating every sharp or flat note in the key with the appropriate symbol, they just say : “Hey, look at the key signature, I wrote it once there, and it goes for the entire line !”. So, in a musical sheet with the key signature “F# – C#”, every F and every C is to be played as F# and C# (unless otherwise noted).

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So far, we have gained a lot of knowledge about scales and keys. But we’re not there yet ! However, for the moment we’ll leave the notes for a while and we’ll direct our attention to another very important phenomenon in Music : Time !

We’ll talk about that a bit more in the next Pomodoro. Hope to find you there !

Building other keys in the diatonic scale

Click here for the general overview

In the previous blog, we saw how we could find the notes on the guitar neck using the diatonic scale in the key of C.

We also found out about sharp and flat notes : a note that is raised half a step is called “sharp” (e.g. F#), and a note that is lowered half a step is called “flat” (e.g. Bb). We did also see that a sharp and a flat note can sound the same, e.g. C# and Db, but I re-assure you that they are not the same. The current blog, and the next one, will explain why.

But now, it’s about time we set out to build other keys in the diatonic scale. And you can do this in 2 ways : "the wrong way, or my way" as Oliver Hardy would have put it.

The "wrong" way would be to apply the diatonic scale to a random note, say B. It's not "wrong", in that if you apply the pattern, you will eventually get the scale. But it's a cumbersome, not well thought out manner.

There is another method - I won't reveal the name of it yet - that yields results much faster and efficient. So, let's take that route !

Have a look again at the pattern in the key of C :

or in a more schematic way :

If you look closely, there's a sub pattern hidden there. That sub pattern is :

or “1 step – 1 step – 1/2 step”.

It's also known as a tetrachord. There are 2 tetrachords in the diatonic scale, connected by a whole note, like this :

It seems that the diatonic scale is built on 2 mini-scales !

Now, if I were to ask you to build the diatonic scale in another key, in other words, starting on another note, what note would you choose ? D ? E ? Any other ?

Well, I would choose G.

Why ? Because I’m lazy !

Let me explain : the diatonic scale has 2 “mini-scales”, 2 tetrachords. If I start the diatonic scale on G, I already have 1 “mini-scale” for free : it’s already there ! There’s no other note in the key of C that offers that advantage !

Ok, so let’s start with G, and write down the notes we know in the key of C :

 

 

There you have it. “Houston, we have a problem.”

 

If we play the notes of the key of C starting on G, we don’t get the pattern of the diatonic scale !

 

Let’s analyze this more closely. The first “mini-scale” seems ok, I mean, that’s why we started on G in the first place. Also, the connecting interval (between the 4th and the 5th note) is a whole tone, as required.

 

The trouble is in the 2nd tetrachord. In stead of the pattern “1 step – 1 step – 1/2 step” we get : “1 step – 1/2 step – 1 step”.

 

Let’s lay this problem out on the guitar. Luckily, we have a G-string (3rd string) we can use to play the scale from the open string to the 12th fret :

 

 

Now, that you see it on the guitar, isn’t the solution obvious ? What do we have to do in order to make the F half a step closer to the octave G ?

 

Right ! You have to raise it half a step ! So, in stead of playing F, you play F#, like so :

 

 

Schematically, this is the result :

 

So, if you play an F# in the key of G in stead of F, everything is ok !

We could put it even more strongly, and state that there's only 1 key in the diatonic scale that has 1 sharp note, and that's the key of G !

In other words :
If you have 0 sharp notes, you are in the key of C.
If you have 1 sharp note – which always will be F# – then you are in the key of G.

Okay, let’s move on !

Now, building on the key of G, if I were to ask you to play another key, in other words, choosing another note to start playing the diatonic scale, what note would that be ?

Well, I would choose D. And for the same reason : the first mini-scale I need already there ! Starting the diatonic scale on D, I have 1 “mini-scale” for free !

If you write down the notes of the key of G, starting on D, then you get this :

 

Again, we run into trouble : the pattern is broken !

After a quick analysis we find that it’s the same problem as with the key of G : it’s the 7th note, in this case C, that causes the problem.

Let’s see this on the guitar. I’ll use the 4th (D) string to play the scale from open string to the 12th fret :

Notice that I play F# and not F, because our base was the key of G, not C !

Also, notice that the solution is again very obvious ! Don’t you see it ? Of course you do : if you raise C to C#, you regain the diatonic pattern :

Or schematically :

 

So, the key of D requires 2 sharp notes : F# (coming from the G-key) and now the C#.

 

Let's recap what we have :

no sharp notes : key of C

1 sharp note F# : key of G

2 sharp notes F# + C# : key of D

 

Now, let me ask you these questions : what key would you build next ?

And on what note do you expect a problem ?

And how do you think you can solve that problem ?

And last question : how many sharp notes would you have in that key ?

 

Think about this for a while before you read the answers below….

 

Well the answers are :

 

the key I would build next is the key of A, because the first mini-scale would already be there.

 

I expect to have trouble at the 7th note, which in this case would be G.

 

I would solve that problem by raising the G half a step to G#.

 

So, the key of A has 3 sharp notes : F# (coming from the key of G), C# (coming from the key of D) and now my own G#.

 

So, again let’s recap :

 

0 sharp notes : key of C

1 sharp note F# : key of G

2 sharp notes F# + C# : key of D

3 sharp notes F# + C# + G# : key of A

 

Using this method, you can continue to build other keys. And I suggest you do that one more time. (What key would you have ?)

 

If you continue after that, you’ll end up eventually raising all the notes, even the B to a B# ! And, eventually, you would come full circle : from the key of C, you would end up in the key of C.

 

Here’s another thing to notice : every time we started a new key, we used the 5th note :

from C we took the 5th note G to build the key of G

from G we took the 5th note D to build the key of D

from D we took the 5th note A to build the key of A

etc..

 

So, there is a very appropriate name for this method we used to build keys. It’s called :

 

“The Circle Of Fifths” !

 

How great is that ? Now you know what is meant by “The Circle Of Fifths” ! It’s the method of building keys on the 5th note of the scale, adding more and more sharp notes as you go.

These sharp notes will always be in this order : F# + C# + G# + D# + ….

Also notice that the distance between those sharp notes are also 5 notes, e.g. between F# and C# (F# – G – A – B – C#).

 

If you’re main interest is to play folk or bluegrass music, then the keys that we’ve built in this Pomodoro are all you need : the keys of C, G, A, D and sometimes E cover almost all of the folk and bluegrass songs !

 

But if you are into jazz, you’ll have to learn to build more keys. And that’s what we’ll do in the next Pomodoro.

Things with strings

Click here for the general overview

In the previous blog, we've seen the diatonic scale in the key of C.

But why did we start with C as the root note, and not A or G or whatever note ?

Well, I don’t know. I guess it has evolved that way through hundreds of years of music theory and education. So much so, that the piano and any keyboard instrument is biased towards the diatonic scale in the key of C.

As you know, a keyboard has white and black keys. We also know that there are whole tones and half- or semi-tones. Now, you might think that the white keys represent whole tones, and the black keys half tones.

Well, you’d be wrong ! The fact is, if you play the diatonic scale in the key of C, you NEVER hit a black key !

 

Because we know that the diatonic scale HAS half tones, that means that some white keys are indeed a whole tone apart, and some a half tone (between E and F and between B and the octave C) ! To me, that’s very confusing !

On the other hand, the guitar or any other fretted instrument are scale- and key-neutral, because they're not set up in any way or another. With fretted instruments, it’s very simple : a semi-tone is 1 fret, a whole tone is 2 frets. That's it !

So, in my opinion, music theory should be taught with a guitar or a fretted instrument instead of a piano ! There, I’ve said it !

Now, let’s look again to the diatonic scale in the key of C that we played in the last lesson on the 2nd string.

Again, the pattern is : 1 – 1 – 1/2 – 1 – 1 – 1 – 1/2. (This is a mantra we’ll repeat over and over !)

The big question is : what are all those notes in between the fretted notes ? Well, they are the black keys on the piano ! If you compare the piano diagram above with the guitar fretboard with the green dots acting as the white keys, you will see that the unfretted notes match the black keys on the piano.

But what are we to do with them ? Well, there’s a lot you can do, but for now, let’s say that they allow you to raise or lower a note by half a step. If you raise a note by half a step, the note is called “sharp”. If you lower it by half a step, it’s called “flat”. The symbol for sharp is the hash “#”, that for flat is an italic “b”. (Don’t ask me why !).

So, you can play C, but when you raise it (1 fret higher), then you play C# (pronounced as “C sharp”). D one fret higher is D#  (“D sharp”), etc.

So, let’s play the diatonic scale in C, together with all the notes raised. You’ll get this :

Hey, wait a minute, we’re playing the chromatic scale again ! Yep, that’s right : the diatonic scale together with all the notes raised or lowered gives you the chromatic scale.

Something to notice : you cannot raise the E with half a step, because you’re playing the F at that moment. Idem ditto for the B : there’s no B-sharp, only a C.

Now, let’s try to lower the notes. If you lower D half a step, you get Db (D flat), with E the same : Eb (E flat).

So, let’s play the diatonic scale again, but now together with all the notes “flattened” :

Again, you have the chromatic scale. Let’s make another little notice : just as you didn’t have E-sharp or B-sharp, there is no F-flat or C-flat either : if you play the F half a step lower, you have the E, the C half a step lower is B.

But there’s something else to notice. You know that between C and D there is a very audible distinction (a whole tone), but between C# and Db there is none ! Indeed, you play the same fret for both notes, so they sound the same (they’re in unison). The same is true for D# and Eb, F# and Gb, G# and Ab, and A# and Bb.

So, what’s the use of that ? Well, I won’t tell you now, but I can assure you that this will come in very handy when we’ll try to build the diatonic scale in other keys ! And I can also tell you that, even though they sound the same, there is a HUGE difference between C# and Db, or in general the sharp and flat note that sound the same.

Well, armored with this knowledge, we are ready to build other keys in the diatonic scale !

There’s one more thing I want to discuss. It’s about finding the notes on the guitar. If you know the guitar, you can skip this part.The reason I mention it, is that I had a friend who played really well, but if you asked him to play a C on the 5th string, he would be lost !

First, let’s review once again the standard tuning of the guitar. These are the notes you hear when you play the open strings. (if your guitar is tuned correctly ! )

So, using the diatonic scale in the key of C, it should be possible to go from the 6th string (the low E) to the 1st string, which also happens to be “E”, using all the strings in between.

And sure enough, that’s the case. Let’s start with going from the 6th string to the 5th, the “A”. Let me show first how it’s done, then we’ll discuss it :

See, what we did here is simply apply the diatonic scale in the key of C. We know that between E and F there’s only half a step. If you’re not sure, remember that in the diatonic pattern there are only 2 half steps : between the 3rd and the 4th note, and between the 7th and the octave. And since the E is the 3rd note in the key of C, and F the 4th, that means there’s only half a step between them ! Are you ok with that ?

Now, from the F to the G there’s a whole tone, so 2 frets, and from the G to the A also a whole tone.

But now you have the choice : you can either play the A on the 5th fret of the 6th string, or you can play the 5th string open ! They’re the same note !

Let’s continue. Just after “A”, there’s of course “B”, and then “C”. Again, you have the choice : you can continue playing them on the 6th string, or you can switch to the 5th string !

If you look closely, you will notice that both options apply the same pattern : from A to B a whole note (2 frets) and from B to C a half step (1 fret). B is indeed the 7th, and C the 8th (or 1st) note in the key of C. Like I said, it’s all about applying the pattern !

With all this knowledge, you should be able to to play the diatonic scale in the key of C, using all 6 strings, and playing all the open strings. If you are in doubt, here is the answer :

Of course, this is only the beginning of the exploration of the fingerboard ! Notes are scattered all over the place, and it’s fun to discover them ! For instance try to find all the C’s on your guitar, and play the diatonic scale in the key of C to connect them, upwards or downwards.

It will be even more fun when we talk about other keys. Because if you try to play those keys, you will find that they share the same pattern as the key of C !

So, that’s what we’ll talk about in the next Pomodoro ! Have fun !