{"id":12912,"date":"2016-03-17T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-03-17T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hearandplay.com\/main\/?p=12912"},"modified":"2024-10-08T04:42:38","modified_gmt":"2024-10-08T12:42:38","slug":"neighboring-triads-can-help-remember-major-scale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hearplaymain.wpenginepowered.com\/neighboring-triads-can-help-remember-major-scale\/","title":{"rendered":"These Neighboring Triads Can Help You Remember the Major Scale In All 12 Keys"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today, I\u2019ll be showing you another approach to the scale formation of the major scale that can guide your left hand.<\/p>\n

I’m very certain that a vast majority of musicians are struggling with their left hand.<\/p>\n

The tons of emails we’ve received in the past from people asking for help on how to guide their left hand, coupled with the challenges I faced in my earlier days, lends credence to this.<\/p>\n

Considering that this approach is chord-based, you\u2019ll appreciate it more if you’re thoroughly acquainted with all the major<\/a> and minor<\/a> triads on the keyboard.<\/p>\n

Alright! Let\u2019s get started by reviewing the major scale.<\/p>\n

Review Of The Major Scale<\/b><\/h2>\n

Music scholars define a scale as a melodic progression of notes in ascending and descending order based on a fixed formula.<\/p>\n

However, it\u2019s easy to understand what a scale means if you know the root word for scale in Latin.<\/p>\n

Scale comes from the Latin word scala<\/i>, which means ladder. Therefore, it\u2019s easy to define the scale as a ladder of pitches.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Formation of the C major scale is as easy as starting from C:
\n
\n\u2026and moving stepwise from one white note to the other until its octave:
\n
\nIf you want to know why this scale is called the major scale, you need to check out this post on <\/a>the difference between major and minor modes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Most musicians are familiar with the C major scale because of its simplicity.<\/p>\n

However, considering that there are eleven other major scales apart from C, it is important to share with you another approach to the formation of the major scale using neighboring triads.<\/p>\n

So, what are neighboring triads?<\/p>\n

How To Remember The Major Scale With Neighboring Triads<\/h2>\n

Every major scale has seven degrees. Chords are numbered according to the scale degree they are built from, hence the terms chord 1, chord 2, chord 3, etc.<\/p>\n

Triads that are built from adjacent scale degrees are known as neighboring triads.<\/p>\n

Examples of neighboring triads in the key of C major include…<\/p>\n

Chords 1 and 2<\/strong><\/p>\n

C major:
\n
\n…and D minor:
\n
\n…whose roots (C and D):
\n
\n…are adjacent to each other.<\/p>\n

Chords 3 and 4
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

E minor:
\n
\n…and F major:
\n
\n…whose roots (E and F):
\n
\n…are adjacent to each other.<\/p>\n

Chords 5 and 6
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

G major:
\n
\n…and A minor:
\n
\n…whose roots (G and A):
\n
\n…are adjacent to each other.<\/p>\n

Chords 7 and 1
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

B diminished:
\n
\n…and C major:
\n
\n…whose roots (B and C):
\n
\n…are adjacent to each other.<\/p>\n

These neighboring triads form what music scholars call the neighboring chord couple.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Notwithstanding that there are several neighboring chord couples:<\/p>\n