Relative Minor & Relative Major
| 23 April 2009
| Major Scale Formula | 1 <T> 2 <T> 3 <S> 4 <T> 5 <T> 6 <T> 7 <S> 8 |
| Minor Scale Formula | 1 <T> 2 <S> 3 <T> 4 <T> 5 <S> 6 <T> 7 <T> 8 |
A Diatonic Scale
A diatonic scale has exactly 7 notes in it. The last note of a diatonic scale is a repetition of the first note and doesn't count as one of those seven notes, this is the octave (8th note). The major scale is the most common example of a diatonic scale. Other types of diatonic scales include: the harmonic minor scale, the natural minor scale, and the melodic minor scale. The scale we are learning here is the natural minor scale.
The following examples show a movement of 2 tones, semitone then 3 tones, semitone. As you can see marked in red you can find both a major scale and minor scale, they just start from different points.
Diatonic Scale
T T S T T T S T T S T T T S
Major Scale
T T S T T T S T T S T T T S
Minor Scale
T T S T T T S T T S T T T S
Place you mouse over this image to see the comparison between the major and minor.
Hidden in every major scale there is a minor scale (the 6th note of that scale) and in every minor scale there is a major scale (the 3rd note of that scale). This is what is known as "Relative Minor" or "Relative Major". This is when a major and minor scale share the notes of the scale but the starting notes (the root notes) are different.
C Major Scale
1 - [T] - 2 - [T] - 3 - <S> - 4 - [T] - 5 - [T] - 6 - [T] - 7 - <S> - 8
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1
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2
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3
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4
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5
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6
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7
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8
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C
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D
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E
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F
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G
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A
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B
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C
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A Minor Scale
1 - [T] - 2 - <S> - 3 - [T] - 4 - [T] - 5 - <S> - 6 - [T] - 7 - [T] - 8
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1
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2
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3
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4
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5
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6
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7
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8
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A
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B
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C
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D
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E
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F
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G
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A
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This is derived from the Chromatic Scale
Define: A scale consisting of 12 semitones
A - A# - B - C - C# - D - D# - E - F - F# - G - G# - A
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