What Scales Should I Learn First On Piano

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There's many different types of scale and each one needs to be learnt in 12 keys. It tin exist very confusing for a beginner to know which scales to learn first on piano and and then which gild to learn the rest. There's a few scales information technology makes most sense to start with but then the further you get along your journey, the more flexible your approach should get. Myself and many other piano teachers generally kickoff students off in much the aforementioned way.

Major scales are the nearly common and useful to acquire first on pianoforte, followed by the natural, harmonic and melodic minors. Beginning with C Major equally information technology has no sharps or flats, then G D, A and Due east major before starting the minors. Next, learn some pentatonic, blues and chromatic scales plus the modes.

In that location'south a chip more to remember about though considering there's the order of the types of scales and the nigh useful order of keys within each one to consider. We'll take a look at both.

The post-obit guidelines are to help you understand why a certain route often works best but also when to deviate. So you'll be more confident in finding a practical and efficient learning path for yourself.

Which Order To Learn Piano Scales

This is a useful outline of the social club in which to learn the different piano scales. Starting with major and the minors is the best idea for most people but the farther yous become, the more flexible you can exist to suit your needs.

Major Scales
Natural Minor Scales
Harmonic Minor Scales
Melodic Small Scales
Pentatonic Scales
Blues Scales
Chromatic Scales
Modes Of The Major Scale
Other More than Advanced Scales

Major	Most common and useful to start with
Natural Modest	The adjacent near common. You need this kickoff to sympathize the other minors which are frequently used
Melodic And Harmonic Minor	These make sense to larn together really. You could also include the Dorian style here as information technology is very similar and like shooting fish in a barrel to learn aslope
Pentatonic And Blues	Useful to start learning for more contemporary piano and improvisation. Blues scales are pentatonics with ane extra note
Chromatic	Very useful for technique purposes
Modes Of The Major Scale	Learn the concept of modes together simply for contemporary music, you may demand Mixolydian and Dorian earlier on
Other	There'southward so many more scales that exist. By this point, yous should just start learning what yous demand for whatever music you lot're learning or writing.

You lot don't demand to consummate the gear up and learn all 12 of each blazon before moving on. Information technology's usually best to stagger starting each one and be flexible and so yous're learning what you need to support the actual music you're working on. Call back, there's no exact or perfect lodge to suit everyone.

Permit'southward now have a look at each blazon and order within.

Major Scales

Major scales seem to be the most normally used in music and particularly in the commencement stages, you volition come across them most often. They are also the simplest to understand and brainstorm playing.

Nigh students first learning to read in major keys signatures rather than pocket-size partly because modest keys commonly change a couple of notes. If y'all want to read music in the key of D major, you must learn the D major calibration!

Major scales are also fundamental to understanding how music works from a theory perspective. A clear grasp of these gives you a potent foundation from which to acquire almost how other scales, chords and chord progressions work too.

In one case you learn to find them easily on the keyboard, they are useful as a visual framework y'all tin can utilize and accommodate to find other scales too. They likewise help you to empathise how a slice of music works and memorize it.

Yous can read my article Hither on why you should e'er memorize scales to learn more nearly that.

What Order To Learn Major Scales In

Here's a useful order y'all tin learn the major scales in. Y'all can be a bit flexible with this to fit what you're learning though so read on for further details.

Start with C major. Information technology has no flats or sharps and simply uses white keys, making information technology easier to play and read music. Then you tin can acquire the other major scales starting from white notes in lodge of sharps, K D, A, Eastward, B, then F. After that, black key major scales in order of flats, Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, Gb.

C Major
G Major (i Sharp)
D Major (2 Sharps)
A Major (three Sharps)
East Major (4 Sharps)
F Major (1 Flat)
B Major (5 Sharps)
Bb Major (two Flats)
Eb Major (2 Flats)
Ab Major (3 Flats)
Db Major (iv Flats)
F#/Gb Major (half-dozen sharps/half dozen Flats)

C Major	All-time To Starting time Here
G, D, A, East, B Majors	The remainder of the white annotation major scales (Autonomously from F) They all employ the aforementioned fingerings every bit C. Each one has an extra sharp. Learn At To the lowest degree K before F
F Major	You could learn this before or after the last groupe every bit you may need to use information technology sooner
Bb, Eb, Ab, D, Gb/F# Majors	The black note major scales Very unlike finger patterns hither and then best to learn last unless you really need to learn 1 earlier

Why Start With C?

Starting with C means non having to worry almost remembering which notes to use, it's just a straight line from C to C! This makes it the easiest to play when yous're first learning and trying to go your fingers under control and easily working together properly.

Having no black keys (flats or sharps) makes it much easier to begin reading canvass music, playing from memory or by ear.

A straight line of white notes also makes it much clearer to sympathise how the scale is built in terms of intervals and visualize many other aspects of music theory on the keyboard. For much more than depth on the topic of how the key of C can really assistance you understand music amend, read this article Hither.

After C, outset making your way clockwise effectually the circle of 5ths. The circle of 5ths is simply a way of organizing central signatures by the amount of sharps or flats in the key. Going clockwise, each cardinal is a 5th up from the terminal.

The side by side 1 after C would be K which has 1 black notation (sharp), so D which has two and so on. It makes sense to learn at to the lowest degree G besides or up to E (iv sharps) because to this indicate, they all use the same finger numbers. This is helpful for learning every bit you lot tin focus more on finding new shapes whilst non having to worry about getting confused with a new finger pattern at the aforementioned time. These few keys are besides going to be easiest, most common and near useful to brainstorm learning music in.

You don't have to be also rigid hither though, be flexible. My proffer would be to learn at least C and G, but and then you could learn F major likewise if information technology makes sense for you (i.e you're learning a song in F). It too only has one blackness note (a flat) and it's still easier and common to learn music in F equally a beginner. The right hand fingers are slightly different though this time simply easily together still feels fairly similar and it's good to expand in minor steps.

B major then has a slightly unlike left mitt blueprint but nonetheless feels similar to C major hands together. Learn this afterward you have done C to East unless you really need to learn it earlier.

I would then begin learning the flat side (anti-clockwise) effectually the circumvolve upwardly to Gb/F#. From B flat onwards, these scales all outset to experience very dissimilar nether your fingers which is why it'due south normally all-time to wait. Of class, if you really need to start these keys earlier because of other music yous're working on, and then it's not really going to cause a massive problem.

Major Calibration Tutorial Playlist

I accept a PLAYLIST on YouTube with tutorials for every major scale. You can use these to assistance you larn each scale.

I also have a articulate and helpful PDF worksheet containing graphics, note and finger numbers for every major scale yous tin download as a handy reference.

Yous don't need to acquire all 12 before starting minor scales, in near cases there's not much point. You'll want to beginning learning music in minor keys manner earlier so and it'll be much more productive to stagger it. So later on y'all've done 3 or 4 majors, start with minor scales besides and then y'all can work through both, simultaneously.

Natural Minor Scales

Minor scales are regularly used in music too so these are quite important to begin learning early. At that place'southward actually a few types of pocket-sized calibration, each which a slight difference at the top of the scale.

The natural minor scale is the 1 you lot need to start with. You tin see from the circle of 5ths above that each major calibration has a relative modest calibration. These 2 keys use all the same notes and share the same key signature, but they only get-go in different places.

A piece of music in a minor key quite often changes back and forth between which kind of minor scale is being used. It makes sense to learn natural pocket-size first then equally it fits a central signature perfectly without having to use any accidentals (extra flats, sharps or naturals) to get outside.

They also requite you the foundation to understand the other minor scales from the theory side and once you can encounter them on the keyboard comfortably, it becomes direct forrard to adjust them to discover the other types.

What Order To Learn Natural Scales In

With minor scales, I don't normally teach them completely in the order of the circumvolve of 5ths. Here's a useful gild you can use but make certain to read on considering there's a specific reason I like to practise information technology like this. Again, after the outset couple, y'all can definitely be flexible to suit what aspect of learning you're focusing on or to acquire a scale you need for a slice.

I Like to teach and have students practice finding small scales either by converting a major scale or finding the relative minor of a major scale. I usually try to do every key both ways at some point.

A Minor
C Minor
G Minor
F Small-scale
D Minor
Due east Minor
B Small
F# Pocket-size
C# Pocket-sized
G# Minor
D#/Eb Minor
Bb Pocket-size

A Minor and C Minor	A Minor is only white notes merely C is the best for agreement how small-scale scales are congenital
G, F, D, E, B Minors	Going through these helps you to acquire to convert major scales you know to minors b flattening the third, 6th and 7th
F#, C#, G#, D#/Eb, Bb Minor	These follow the circle of 5th from F# Minor. You tin can also start learning these earlier or mix with the last grouping if yous need.

Usually in the same lesson, I will outset with A minor and C modest. A minor considering it'southward the relative small-scale of C major and therefore withal but uses white notes. C minor because it is clearer to picture the intervals used to construct a minor scale. The 3 intervals that are flattened compared to the major scale design are black and then they stand up out.

To reinforce a student'south understanding of theory, I think it is then useful to become them to detect minor scales themselves past converting major scales they already know. I like starting with the major keys that begin on a white note and have less blackness notes to make it visually clearer. Then afterwards A and C, next would be K and F, and then D E and B.

The keys starting from the black notes, I will frequently exit until last unless they're needed earlier. I don't recollect the club here is terribly important really but you lot could commencement going clockwise from F# minor on the circle of 5ths to hit them all in an organized way.

After just learning a few keys of just the natural minor though, I would and then start to learn how to adjust them to create the other types of pocket-size scales.

Harmonic And Melodic Small-scale Scales

Changing between dissimilar types of minor scales midway through a piece of music is very common so these are of import to learn fairly early on on.

Because these and the natural minor are just different combinations of the minor or major the 6th and the 7th notes, it makes sense for some people to acquire the Dorian style at the same time which is the concluding combination. This is used ofttimes in genres similar jazz, funk, soul and dejection.

What Social club To Larn Harmonic And Melodic Minors In

Because how they're built is then close and their usage is so intertwined, information technology makes sense to learn all iii types of small scale alongside each other for the rest of the way. Do start off learning and agreement these for the very first time in C though for the same reason as before. Information technology is much easier to picture the theory on the keyboard itself and see what intervals are used to build each 1 in C.

You lot tin can learn how to fully empathise the different pocket-sized scales in this video.

I also have a helpful PDF worksheet on minor scales theory available

Pentatonic Scales And Blues Scales

These are very useful for more modern playing and especially improvisation. They are very much connected because of the fashion they are used and considering the blues scales are really just adding i extra 'blue' annotation to the equation.

Pentatonic really means there's 5 notes in it so technically, there's actually a few types but when we say THE pentatonic scales, people are talking virtually these specific major and minor versions we apply all the time. Each major has a relative pocket-size as well, kind of like the major and minor scales.

There are major and minor versions of the blues scales as well, both really useful to larn for slightly different musical situations.

Learning these, focus more on just what the notes are and what you can practise with them. It'south not e'er as necessary to practice them upward and down like you would majors and minors. You tin can if you demand later in your career, peradventure for a long run.

What Order To learn Pentatonic And Blues Scales In

I recommend learning to understand these scales for the beginning time, both major and minor versions in C and then A.

In the earlier stages of your learning, you will probable come across the keys commencement from the other white notes more oft with the kinds of music y'all will utilise these scales for, with the possible exception of B.

It makes sense to focus on the keys y'all will use the most so and just learn each scale when you have need of it. If you want you to try and hit all 12 anyhow and so you're prepared for the future, y'all could as well follow the circle of 5ths to organize your practice.

Chromatic Scales

These are just every annotation on the keyboard! So there's really 12 keys as per usual, one starting from each note, only it's virtually like at that place's only i at the same time. You can utilise the same fingers for each one (just starting at a different point of form)

These are mostly useful for technique purposes to get your fingers used these chromatic movements that come in many types of music

What Guild To acquire Chromatic Scales In

To be honest, with these information technology'southward really not as important to do it in all 12 keys compared to majors and minor for example. One time you can do it comfortably from 1 starting note, it'due south basically the same everywhere.

Information technology may just exist wise to endeavour starting from at least a few different notes, if not all, to make sure you don't get too used to only one set way and that you're comfy starting from dissimilar points in a slice of music.

The Modes Of The Major Scale

Don't focus on technique or speed as much with these like you would majors or minors. It's more of import to just exist able to empathize them and detect them hands on the keyboard then you can use them.

Not all of these are every bit common or useful to learn by heart merely information technology makes sense to understand them all together.

You may want to learn Dorian and Mixolyidan earlier on as they are fairly simple to find and useful for much contemporary music.

What Club To learn The Modes In

Past their very nature, modes are sequenced. In that location'due south the design that begins from the first note of the major scale, the 2nd, the tertiary and then on. When kickoff learning to empathize how modes work, it makes the most sense to just larn them in that order.

However, in terms of memorizing individual modes in different keys, I recollect it'southward best to learn what yous will most likely utilise, first.

Ionian
Aeolian
Dorian
Mixolydian
Lydian
Phrygian
Locrian

Ionian And Aeolian	You will already know these! They are other names for major and natural minor
Dorian And Mixolydian	Virtually mutual other modes used a lot in dejection, rock, jazz, funk etc
Lydian	Non as mutual just really nice sounding
Phyrigian And Locrian	Much less commonly used