What is a scale?
The scale has 8 notes, where the 8th is the same as the 1st, but one
octave higher. The most common type of scale in use today is the major scale. In
this scale, the interval between each note and the next is one whole tone except
between the 3rd and 4th notes, and between the 7th and 8th notes, where it is
half a tone, called a semi-tone. The piano diagram above illustrates this for
the scale of C major, which is the simplest scale to play on a keyboard, because
it uses only the white notes, from one C to the C above.
How to use this screen.
Click on the green button at the
bottom of the screen, labelled Play Scale of C Major,
to hear this scale,
and see the notes depressed on the piano, and the musical notation on the staff.
Click on the red Stop button if
you want to stop the scale playing.