Simple(?) Theory related Question

[nuffink]

I wouldn't be if I were you. You didn't get much in the way of usable advice.

[VicDiesel]

Well then you want to turn your chords into a scale - so Em, Cmaj, Bmaj. looking at www.looknohands.com I can see that E melodic minor desc. with a raised 7th fits with your chords.

E F# G A B C D#

Also known as Harmonic Minor.

That's the only scale that fits those chords, but somehow I don't suspect the OP is playing melodies that have that C-D# jump in them.

In other words: you're probably not playing in any one key, you're mixing them up. To confirm: when you're on that C chord, do your melodies hit a D?

[BoksteR]

I wouldn't be if I were you. You didn't get much in the way of usable advice.

Hey, let a man smile if he wants to

What I got from this thread is this:
If I have those 3 chords and I want to improvise in them,
I can break apart the notes in the chords and use it as a basis to the improvisation.
for example: Em, Cmaj, Bmaj ->would break apart to this "scale" e, f3, g, b, c, d#

if anyone wants to add some more info...then 10nX in advance.

[headquest]

If a melody is made out of the notes from a particular scale (e.g. the G major scale) then we say the tune is in the "Key" of (e.g. G major).

Chords, however, don't always fit into the simple major or minor scale. Often in popular music the chord progression comes from other scales (called "modal" scales).

For example, this chord progression sounds perfectly natural in the key of G major:

G / G / F / C (repeat)

...even though the G major scale has F# in it.

The easiest way to work out the "Key" of a song is to look at the final chord. Basically the "Key" acts like the Centre of Gravity, in the sense that everything else seems to lead back there.