Learn-by-doing lessons for quickly internalizing the Major Pentascale in all keys… by ear, intellect, eye, and muscle…
Table of Contents
Lesson Goals
To quickly internalize the letter names, scale degrees, solfege, notation, sounds, feelings, and visuospatial keyboard layouts for the Major Pentascale in all keys.
Prerequisites
Basic music reading skills (optional)… the LOVE of music… and the discipline to study and practice.
Why Study the Major Pentascales?
- Quickly develops the concept of playing in different major keys.
- Quickly teaches “the first five notes” in every major scale.
- Quickly develops music reading skills in major keys.
- Quickly develops visuospatial keyboard awareness in every major key.
- Quickly develops the ability to read, construct, and play major triads.
- Quickly internalizes basic building blocks used in all kinds of music… by ear, intellect, eye, and muscle.
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Study & Practice Reminders
- Never play these mindlessly and mechanically. Always aspire to play musically.
- Your goal is not to merely memorize these, but to study and practice them until you internalize them using all four musical intelligences: ears, intellect, eyes, and muscles.
- Every time you practice something, you are programming your brain. So always play accurately.
- Practice with a click track or rhythm track. Doing so will give you immediate feedback on any rhythmic misconceptions or places where your timing gets sloppy.
- Record yourself. Always. Listen to the playback immediately. And ask yourself: Is that what you intended to play?”
- If anything feels tense or awkward, stop immediately and experiment with alternative fingerings or choreography.
- Play this in other keys you expect to play in. By the way, once you see the patterns (which is guaranteed if you know your scales and chords) finding the notes in other keys will be a piece of cake!
- If you feel stuck or overwhelmed, realize that anything can and will be mastered if you slow things down or break things down to small enough pieces.
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Major Pentascale Theory
- The Solfege Syllables for the Major Pentascale are Do-Re-Mi-Fa-So (no matter what key).
- The Scale Degrees for the Major Pentascale are 1-2-3-4-5 (no matter what key).
- The notes for the Major Pentascale in the key of C are C-D-E-F-G…
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Major Pentascale & Major Triad
It’s crucial to understand that the major pentascale (1-2-3-4-5 / Do-Re-Mi-Fa-So) and tonic major triad (1-3-5 / Do–Mi–So) are inseparably interrelated and overlap as shown here in the key of C major… where 1, 3, and 5 of the major pentascale and 1, 3, and 5 of the major triad are the very same notes…
Here’s a short and sweet study-practice idea for getting the major harmony and five-note scale into your ears, intellect, eyes, and muscles…
Notice how it sounds and feels right… and makes musical sense for the chord tones 1, 3, and 5 to fall on downbeats!
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Major Pentascale Compared to the Minor Pentascale
Three things to understand:
- It’s all about “the 3”!
- Mi (3) makes things sound and feel major!
- Me (b3) makes things sound and feel minor!
Listen to the C Major Pentascale…
Listen to the C Minor Pentascale…
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Major Pentascale Theory & Ear Training, All Keys
Showing the notation, key signature, letter names, scale degrees, solfege syllables, and keyboard layouts… arranged chromatically ascending (C, Db, D, Eb, E, F, F#, G, Ab, A, Bb, B)…
C Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The C Major Penta-scale is spelled C-D-E-F-G.”
D Flat Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The D flat Major Penta-scale is spelled Db-Eb-F-Gb-Ab.”
D Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The D Major Penta-scale is spelled D-E-F#-G-A.”
E Flat Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The E flat Major Penta-scale is spelled Eb-F-G-Ab-Bb.”
E Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The E Major Penta-scale is spelled E-F#-G#-A-B.”
F Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The F Major Penta-scale is spelled F-G-A-Bb-C.”
G Flat Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The G flat Major Penta-scale is spelled Gb-Ab-Bb-Cb-Db.”
G Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The G Major Penta-scale is spelled G-A-B-C-D.”
A Flat Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The A flat Major Penta-scale is spelled Ab-Bb-C-Db-Eb.”
A Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The A Major Penta-scale is spelled A-B-C#-D-E.”
B Flat Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The B flat Major Penta-scale is spelled Bb-C-D-Eb-F.”
B Major
As you read and play, say this aloud: “The B Major Penta-scale is spelled B-C#-D#-E-F#.”
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