Best way to remember scales...?

[golemus]

When you think about scales do you remember in your head that "F-maj has one flat (B-flat)" or that "D-min has one flat (B-flat)"...?

I am trying to learn to remember then and I am not sure which is more convenient memory rule.

Usually it is majors that are thought to us first but I suppose that you could argument that remembering minor scales is better as most modern music are in minor scale...?"

[kurodo]

Note sure if its the right way? but I first memorized the Circle of Fifths and then started using formulas.




Formula example:
Major:
1,2,3,4,5,6,7

Natural Minor:
1,2,b3,4,5,b6,b7

Harmonic Minor:
1,2,b3,4,5,b6,7

Pentatonic Minor:
1,b3,4,5,b7

and so on.

But really I think you should commit Major and Minor to memory regardless.

[Sendy]

I have it from muscle memory. Used to be forced to play scales on the piano as a kid

My memory is a bit patchy at the extreme sharps and flats end of the scale (pun unintended, go away shitty pun!), but after hearing major and minor scales for 10 years you start to know instinctively when you've made a mistake and how to correct it.

[kurodo]

I have it from muscle memory. Used to be forced to play scales on the piano as a kid

My memory is a bit patchy at the extreme sharps and flats end of the scale (pun unintended, go away shitty pun!), but after hearing major and minor scales for 10 years you start to know instinctively when you've made a mistake and how to correct it.

Yeah scale practice is essential There's no escaping it. lol

[Nystul]

The way that people are taught and practice will affect how they think about it. I had to learn mnemonics for the order of sharps and flats early on, so that is quite automatic for me. Then I learned the major scales and they got to be automatic through practice for the most part. Now one "trick" that is taught with major scales (and there are so many possible "tricks" to learning patterns like this) is the leading tone, a half step below the tonic. It will be the last sharp in the key signature, or the first natural. For example, the leading tone of A major is G#, so A major has F#, C#, G#, stop. The leading tone of Ab major is G, so Ab major has Bb, Eb, Ab, Db... stop before we get to G. For someone who knows order of sharps and flats really well but hasn't got the scales, this is a way to cheat. But I think for me it is more like, each scale I learned had one more sharp than the last, and this order I learned them (which turns out to be circle of fifths yet again) was sticking in my head. Probably even as a youngster I realized the order I was learning the scales was the same as the order of the sharps themselves.

Now when I started learning minor scales, I thought of them as major scale + 3 flats. I didn't think about the relative major (D minor having the same as F major), but rather the parallel major (D minor is D major -2 sharps +1 flat). The reason for this is probably because I was practicing them in that way. One week I was to practice C major, all of the C minor scales, chromatic scale from C, etc. The next week it would be G. So when I played a minor scale I had just finished playing the parallel major. So I just added 3 flats or subtracted 3 sharps. And to this day I can still fall back on that, although I have pretty well memorized that A minor doesn't have any flats or sharps.

[stimresp]

Just count the number of keys (inc black).

Where R is the root note:

Major R 2 2 1 2 2 2
Minor R 2 1 2 2 2 2
Harmonic minor R 2 1 2 2 1 3
Melodic minor R 2 1 2 2 2 2
Pentatonic major R 2 3 2 2
Pentatonic minor R 3 2 2 3
Pentatonic Blues R 3 2 1 1 3

[MadBrain]

Just memorize the number of sharps/flats for each key. Some tricks:
- To get the minor from a major key, you add 3 flats (or remove 3 sharps). This also works with modes (phrygian = 4b, dorian = 2b, mixolydian = 1b, lydian = 1#).
- The order of sharps (F#-C#-G#-D#-A#-E#-B#) is the same as the order of flats in reverse (Bb-Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Cb-Fb) and the order of major keys from 1b to 5# (F=1b, C=0, G=1#, D=2#, A=3#, E=4#, B=5#) or minor keys from 4b to 2# (Fm=4b, Cm=3b, Gm=2b, Dm=1b, Am=0, Em=1#, Bm=2#).

Another possible method:
Fb-Cb-Gb-Db-Ab-Eb-Bb-F-C-G-D-A-E-B-F#-C#-G#-D#-A#-E#-B#
- To pick a major scale, select the root note (ex: Bb), the note to its left (Eb) and the 5 notes to its right (F-C-G-D-A).
- To pick a minor scale, select the root note (ex: F), the 4 notes to its left (Db-Ab-Eb-Bb) and the 2 notes to its right (C-G).

[werp]

This should be a poll..fish is an accurate answer.

[Jee-Bee]

thanks!!

[digitalboytn]

The best way to remember Scales would be with a simple memorial service

[tehlord]

I have it from muscle memory. Used to be forced to play scales on the piano as a kid

This is the 21st century bro

We're all too busy to rely on anything as antiquated as practice or effort.

Is there a plugin?

[Shiek927]

There is something much much better than a plugin, my friend...

It's called the "Vaughn Cube" system. It's a wonderful memory system for all sorts of applications, including Music Theory. I cannot recommend it enough.

[TheTZeds]

The best way to remember Scales would be with a simple memorial service

This actually made me Laugh.

[Worldklock]

The best way to remember Scales would be with a simple memorial service

I liked him, but he was a little fishy.

[Parduz]

About me, i think the best way is to learn the intervals... it's hard for me explain myself in english....
What i mean is that a major scale is always made in this way:
dominant, tone, tone, half tone, tone, tone, tone, half-tone

When i was active in live playing, my brain always knew what order note i was playing (so the 3rd, 4th, the 6th, etc) and so i always knew where i had to go to remain in the scale (or to exit from it).