Aural Skills - Scales
Learn various types of scales by ear.
Setup
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Scales Use these checkboxes to select which scales should be used in the quiz.
Keep each question in one key Usually, the question changes keys each play, even between plays of the same question. You can turn this off and keep playback in the same key until a new question is chosen by checking this box. However, this is not recommended unless you find the quiz very difficult, as changing keys between plays helps teach the user to recognize the quality of a scale better.
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Learning the Scales
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Scales The best way to learn scales is to think in terms of Solfege. Below is a list of the Solfege for each scale.
Scale | Solfege (if the root is Do) |
Ionian (Major) | Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Ti Do (and the same on the way down) |
Dorian | Do Re Me Fa Sol La Te Do (and the same on the way down) |
Phrygian | Do Ra Me Fa Sol Le Te Do (and the same on the way down) |
Lydian | Do Re Mi Fi Sol La Ti Do (and the same on the way down) |
Mixolydian | Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Te Do (and the same on the way down) |
Aeolian (Minor) | Do Re Me Fa Sol Le Te Do (and the same on the way down) |
Locrian | Do Ra Me Fa Se Le Te Do (and the same on the way down) |
Pentatonic | Do Re Mi Sol La (and the same on the way down) |
Whole Tone | Do Re Mi Fi Si Li (and the same on the way down) |
Harmonic Minor | Do Re Me Fa Sol Le Ti Do (and the same on the way down) |
Melodic Minor | Do Re Me Fa Sol La Ti Do (down: Do Te Le Sol Fa Me Re Do) |
An Easier Method Another method of teaching scales is to learn the two most common scales, Ionian (Major) and Aeolian (Minor), and then learn most of the other scales based on those two. Memorize Ionian (Major) as Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Ti Do and Aeolian (Minor) as Do Re Me Fa Sol Le Te Do, and then remember which scale the others are closest to and what the differences are.
Scale | Solfege (if the root is Do) |
Dorian | Minor, with La |
Phrygian | Minor, with Ra |
Lydian | Major, with Fi |
Mixolydian | Major, with Te |
Locrian | Minor, with Ra and Se |
Harmonic Minor | Minor, with Ti |
Melodic Minor | Minor, with La and Ti on the way up only |
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