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Admittedly, I?m quite the neophyte saxophone player. My hope is to quickly take advantage of some prior music theory, as a fourth priority, while my top three priorities are: (1) practice often, (2) practice accurately, and (3) practice slowly (at first).
So, here is my take on an easy approach to some basic music theory that may help someone. I didn?t post this in the jazz theory section because it is actually more basic than that.
There are only 12 notes, right? Simple enough. For whatever reason we call them:
A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#
(The # sign is called ?sharp?)
We could have called them 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Or we could have called them Bob, Charlie, Matt, Tom, Harry, Richard, Mary, Charlotte, Ziona, Susan, Debbie, and Sandy. But that would be confusing.
I could even re-name a note every now and then. So, since YOU have two names, let?s give a few of these notes two names as well. For example, let?s call the A# by two names: A# (A-sharp), and let?s also call it Bb (B-flat). Sometimes I say Pete, and sometimes I say Mr. Thomas, but he?s the same guy.
Let?s call each one of these steps between the 12 notes a ?semitone?. If I want to take two-step, say from the ?A? to the ?B?, we?ll call that a whole tone.
So, from A to A#, is a semitone. From B to C is a semitone. From D to E would be two semi-tones, or a whole tone. Easy huh?
Now, watch this...
Instead of listing my 12 simple notes from A to G#, let?s start with C so that it looks like this:
C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B
Now I?m going to apply a simple pattern that leaves 8 notes without all of those little ?sharpie-thingies? In order to do this I would have to follow a pattern that steps through the notes like this:
From C step a whole tone to D
From D step a whole tone to E
From E step a 1/2 tone to F
From F step a whole tone to G
From G step a whole tone to A
From A step a whole tone to B
Fron B step a 1/2 tone to C
Interesting, huh? The ?pattern? is WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF-WHOLE-WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF.
What you just created was the Major Scale. It has 8 notes in it (if you include the second C). So of the 12 notes available, I don?t even have to use a third of them. This particular Major Scale is the C Major Scale.
C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C
Remember what I said about giving notes more than one name? Well this time, let?s use a little numbering scheme to help illuminate some concepts:
C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
That was easy. Now if I am talking about the C major scale, and I want to talk about the F (more specifically, how it is related to the C), I can also say it is the 4th of C. If I want to talk about the A, I can say it is the 6th of C etc..
I did fib a little bit. I really don?t want to say that C is the first, I would rather say it is the root. Also the C on the end, I don?t really want to say the 8th, I can call it the octave.
Here?s where it gets interesting. Let?s start with this C-Major scale and go UP a fifth. What note is that?
G
Now, look at all 12 notes, and apply that SAME pattern starting with G.
WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF-WHOLE-WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF.
Take 69 seconds and work it out. You should come up with:
G, A, B, C, D, E, F#, G
Hey, we picked up an F# ! So the C-Major scale has zero ?sharpie thingies?, and the G-major scale has one.
Since you are still reading this far, you are obviously in the mood to learn a little bit, so let?s not call them ?sharpie-thingies.? Let?s call them ?accidentals?. An accidental is when one of the notes is ?sharpened? or ?flattened? by a semitone.
So, what if we repeat this pattern yet again?
(1) go up a 5th from G
(2) apply the pattern to all twelve notes
(3) see what you come up with
This time you should get:
(1) The 5th of G is D
(2) The pattern is the same
WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF-WHOLE-WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF.
(3) The new 8-note scale is: D, E, F#, G, A, B, C#, D
See how we keep the F#, and one additional note is now an accidental? It?s the C#. So this D-major scale has two accidentals
If you continue, you find:
the fifth of D is A and the A-major scale as 3 accidentals
the fifth of A is E and the E-major scale as 4 accidentals
the fifth of E is B and the B-major scale as 5 accidentals
the fifth of B is F# and the F#-major scale as 6 accidentals
We?ll continue on further?
the fifth of F# is C# and the C#-major scale as 5 accidentals
the fifth of C# is G# and the G#-major scale as 4 accidentals
the fifth of G# is D# and the D#-major scale as 3 accidentals
the fifth of D# is A# and the A#-major scale as 2 accidentals
the fifth of A# is F and the F-major scale as 1 accidental
the fifth of F is C and the C-major scale as 0 accidentals
Wow.. right back where we started from! It?s almost like a circle, going round and round like this.
One last thing. Just to make the names a tad more meaningful. We started with the C and went UP a fifth. What if we went the other way around? If we started with C, and went down a fifth, wouldn?t we get the F-major scale with one accidental? Yes.
Continuing, if we went DOWN a fifth from the F we would get the A# scale. The only queer thing however is the naming. Because the accidentals that I?m picking up each time I go this way, isn?t being sharpened, it?s being flattened!
F-major scale really should not be seen as: F, G, A, A#, C, D, E, F
That looks kind of funny with that A and the A# in there. That A# is really the B that is flattened. Again, Pete, or Mr. Thomas?it?s the same guy.
This makes more sense:
F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E, F
See how that looks better? We don?t have an A and an A#. Also Notice that going down a fifth from F lands me at the Bb.. so that?s the next scale: The Bb scale.
Down a fifth from C is F, and the F scale has 1 accidental
Down a fifth from F is Bb, and the Bb scale has 2 accidentals
Down a fifth from Bb is Eb, and the Eb scale has 3 accidentals
Down a fifth from Eb is Ab, and the Ab scale has 4 accidentals
Down a fifth from Ab is Db, and the Db scale has 5 accidentals
We have all of the notes of all 12 major scales, all properly named. This can all be summed up in a little diagram called the ?circle of 5ths?. Pete explains it in a proper fashion at http://www.petethomas.co.uk/jazz-cycle-of-5ths.html
Well, you are reading this far. How does this apply to me and you?beginner sax players?
For me, it helps me develop and learn all 12 keys on saxophone. First I learn the C-major scale. Pretty easy.
As Pete suggests in his DVD, I play it at a tempo slow enough to keep proper time. For me-that?s pretty slow. Hey, this actually lets me work on ?long tones? as well. I do this for a few days, a week-whatever it takes to get comfortable.
Next I learn the G-major scale. Now I only have to learn ONE new note, I learn the F#. So now I have two scales to practice. The following few weeks, I practice these two scales. A little bit in the morning before going to work and a lot in the evening. Not too late?I don?t want to disturb the neighbors. 🙂
Next I learn the D-major scale. I already know the F#, now all I have to do is learn the new C#. (This is where I?m at right now). So I have 3 scales to practice.
Once I?m comfortable with this.. It comes quicker than the first. I?ll pick up the A-major scale. All I have to add to my bag of notes is the G#.
Granted, this is only the major scale. There?s a lot more, but most all others are derived from this: For example to play a ?minor? scale, I just need to flatten the 3rd of the major scale. To play a blues scale, I don?t play the second (ugh!), I flatten the 7th and add a flattened fifth. It looks like: Root, b3, 4, b5, 5, b7. We?ll save that discussion for another day (and maybe the jazz theory forum).
So that?s what I?m working on right now. By 15 August (8 weeks away) I want to be able to play all 12 major scales ?fluently? at an even tempo for the entire range of the saxophone.
There. I said it. By writing down this goal, and telling it someone else about it?namely you?I am committed and accountable to it! Wish me luck, and check back in 8 weeks!
So, here is my take on an easy approach to some basic music theory that may help someone. I didn?t post this in the jazz theory section because it is actually more basic than that.
There are only 12 notes, right? Simple enough. For whatever reason we call them:
A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#
(The # sign is called ?sharp?)
We could have called them 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Or we could have called them Bob, Charlie, Matt, Tom, Harry, Richard, Mary, Charlotte, Ziona, Susan, Debbie, and Sandy. But that would be confusing.
I could even re-name a note every now and then. So, since YOU have two names, let?s give a few of these notes two names as well. For example, let?s call the A# by two names: A# (A-sharp), and let?s also call it Bb (B-flat). Sometimes I say Pete, and sometimes I say Mr. Thomas, but he?s the same guy.
Let?s call each one of these steps between the 12 notes a ?semitone?. If I want to take two-step, say from the ?A? to the ?B?, we?ll call that a whole tone.
So, from A to A#, is a semitone. From B to C is a semitone. From D to E would be two semi-tones, or a whole tone. Easy huh?
Now, watch this...
Instead of listing my 12 simple notes from A to G#, let?s start with C so that it looks like this:
C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B
Now I?m going to apply a simple pattern that leaves 8 notes without all of those little ?sharpie-thingies? In order to do this I would have to follow a pattern that steps through the notes like this:
From C step a whole tone to D
From D step a whole tone to E
From E step a 1/2 tone to F
From F step a whole tone to G
From G step a whole tone to A
From A step a whole tone to B
Fron B step a 1/2 tone to C
Interesting, huh? The ?pattern? is WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF-WHOLE-WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF.
What you just created was the Major Scale. It has 8 notes in it (if you include the second C). So of the 12 notes available, I don?t even have to use a third of them. This particular Major Scale is the C Major Scale.
C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C
Remember what I said about giving notes more than one name? Well this time, let?s use a little numbering scheme to help illuminate some concepts:
C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
That was easy. Now if I am talking about the C major scale, and I want to talk about the F (more specifically, how it is related to the C), I can also say it is the 4th of C. If I want to talk about the A, I can say it is the 6th of C etc..
I did fib a little bit. I really don?t want to say that C is the first, I would rather say it is the root. Also the C on the end, I don?t really want to say the 8th, I can call it the octave.
Here?s where it gets interesting. Let?s start with this C-Major scale and go UP a fifth. What note is that?
G
Now, look at all 12 notes, and apply that SAME pattern starting with G.
WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF-WHOLE-WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF.
Take 69 seconds and work it out. You should come up with:
G, A, B, C, D, E, F#, G
Hey, we picked up an F# ! So the C-Major scale has zero ?sharpie thingies?, and the G-major scale has one.
Since you are still reading this far, you are obviously in the mood to learn a little bit, so let?s not call them ?sharpie-thingies.? Let?s call them ?accidentals?. An accidental is when one of the notes is ?sharpened? or ?flattened? by a semitone.
So, what if we repeat this pattern yet again?
(1) go up a 5th from G
(2) apply the pattern to all twelve notes
(3) see what you come up with
This time you should get:
(1) The 5th of G is D
(2) The pattern is the same
WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF-WHOLE-WHOLE-WHOLE-HALF.
(3) The new 8-note scale is: D, E, F#, G, A, B, C#, D
See how we keep the F#, and one additional note is now an accidental? It?s the C#. So this D-major scale has two accidentals
If you continue, you find:
the fifth of D is A and the A-major scale as 3 accidentals
the fifth of A is E and the E-major scale as 4 accidentals
the fifth of E is B and the B-major scale as 5 accidentals
the fifth of B is F# and the F#-major scale as 6 accidentals
We?ll continue on further?
the fifth of F# is C# and the C#-major scale as 5 accidentals
the fifth of C# is G# and the G#-major scale as 4 accidentals
the fifth of G# is D# and the D#-major scale as 3 accidentals
the fifth of D# is A# and the A#-major scale as 2 accidentals
the fifth of A# is F and the F-major scale as 1 accidental
the fifth of F is C and the C-major scale as 0 accidentals
Wow.. right back where we started from! It?s almost like a circle, going round and round like this.
One last thing. Just to make the names a tad more meaningful. We started with the C and went UP a fifth. What if we went the other way around? If we started with C, and went down a fifth, wouldn?t we get the F-major scale with one accidental? Yes.
Continuing, if we went DOWN a fifth from the F we would get the A# scale. The only queer thing however is the naming. Because the accidentals that I?m picking up each time I go this way, isn?t being sharpened, it?s being flattened!
F-major scale really should not be seen as: F, G, A, A#, C, D, E, F
That looks kind of funny with that A and the A# in there. That A# is really the B that is flattened. Again, Pete, or Mr. Thomas?it?s the same guy.
This makes more sense:
F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E, F
See how that looks better? We don?t have an A and an A#. Also Notice that going down a fifth from F lands me at the Bb.. so that?s the next scale: The Bb scale.
Down a fifth from C is F, and the F scale has 1 accidental
Down a fifth from F is Bb, and the Bb scale has 2 accidentals
Down a fifth from Bb is Eb, and the Eb scale has 3 accidentals
Down a fifth from Eb is Ab, and the Ab scale has 4 accidentals
Down a fifth from Ab is Db, and the Db scale has 5 accidentals
We have all of the notes of all 12 major scales, all properly named. This can all be summed up in a little diagram called the ?circle of 5ths?. Pete explains it in a proper fashion at http://www.petethomas.co.uk/jazz-cycle-of-5ths.html
Well, you are reading this far. How does this apply to me and you?beginner sax players?
For me, it helps me develop and learn all 12 keys on saxophone. First I learn the C-major scale. Pretty easy.
As Pete suggests in his DVD, I play it at a tempo slow enough to keep proper time. For me-that?s pretty slow. Hey, this actually lets me work on ?long tones? as well. I do this for a few days, a week-whatever it takes to get comfortable.
Next I learn the G-major scale. Now I only have to learn ONE new note, I learn the F#. So now I have two scales to practice. The following few weeks, I practice these two scales. A little bit in the morning before going to work and a lot in the evening. Not too late?I don?t want to disturb the neighbors. 🙂
Next I learn the D-major scale. I already know the F#, now all I have to do is learn the new C#. (This is where I?m at right now). So I have 3 scales to practice.
Once I?m comfortable with this.. It comes quicker than the first. I?ll pick up the A-major scale. All I have to add to my bag of notes is the G#.
Granted, this is only the major scale. There?s a lot more, but most all others are derived from this: For example to play a ?minor? scale, I just need to flatten the 3rd of the major scale. To play a blues scale, I don?t play the second (ugh!), I flatten the 7th and add a flattened fifth. It looks like: Root, b3, 4, b5, 5, b7. We?ll save that discussion for another day (and maybe the jazz theory forum).
So that?s what I?m working on right now. By 15 August (8 weeks away) I want to be able to play all 12 major scales ?fluently? at an even tempo for the entire range of the saxophone.
There. I said it. By writing down this goal, and telling it someone else about it?namely you?I am committed and accountable to it! Wish me luck, and check back in 8 weeks!
