Piano Scales
Twenty-four scales cover every key you will meet: twelve major and twelve minor. Each one is listed below with its notes and its key signature, and each links to a page where you can play it with the notes graded as you go.
A scale is not a warm-up. It is the alphabet a piece is written in, learn the scale a piece is in and half the reading is already done, because your hand already knows which black keys are involved.
Start with C major (no sharps, no flats), then G major and F major (one each). Add one accidental at a time and the whole set arrives in a couple of months rather than a couple of years.
Major scales
The twelve major scales, ordered by how many accidentals they carry. Each one is one accidental away from its neighbors, which is the order to learn them in.
| Scale | Notes | Key signature | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| C Major Scale | C D E F G A B | none | Key of C Major, relative to A Minor |
| F Major Scale | F G A B♭ C D E | 1 flat (B♭) | Key of F Major, relative to D Minor |
| G Major Scale | G A B C D E F♯ | 1 sharp (F♯) | Key of G Major, relative to E Minor |
| B Flat Major Scale | B♭ C D E♭ F G A | 2 flats (B♭ E♭) | Key of B Flat Major, relative to G Minor |
| D Major Scale | D E F♯ G A B C♯ | 2 sharps (F♯ C♯) | Key of D Major, relative to B Minor |
| A Major Scale | A B C♯ D E F♯ G♯ | 3 sharps (F♯ C♯ G♯) | Key of A Major, relative to F Sharp Minor |
| E Flat Major Scale | E♭ F G A♭ B♭ C D | 3 flats (B♭ E♭ A♭) | Key of E Flat Major, relative to C Minor |
| A Flat Major Scale | A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G | 4 flats (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭) | Key of A Flat Major, relative to F Minor |
| E Major Scale | E F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D♯ | 4 sharps (F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯) | Key of E Major, relative to C Sharp Minor |
| B Major Scale | B C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A♯ | 5 sharps (F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯) | Key of B Major, relative to G Sharp Minor |
| D Flat Major Scale | D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ C | 5 flats (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭) | Key of D Flat Major, relative to B Flat Minor |
| G Flat Major Scale | G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭ D♭ E♭ F | 6 flats (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ C♭) | Key of G Flat Major, relative to E Flat Minor |
Minor scales
The twelve natural minor scales. Each shares its key signature with a major scale, the relative major, so learning one gets you both.
| Scale | Notes | Key signature | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Minor Scale | A B C D E F G | none | Key of A Minor, relative to C Major |
| D Minor Scale | D E F G A B♭ C | 1 flat (B♭) | Key of D Minor, relative to F Major |
| E Minor Scale | E F♯ G A B C D | 1 sharp (F♯) | Key of E Minor, relative to G Major |
| B Minor Scale | B C♯ D E F♯ G A | 2 sharps (F♯ C♯) | Key of B Minor, relative to D Major |
| G Minor Scale | G A B♭ C D E♭ F | 2 flats (B♭ E♭) | Key of G Minor, relative to B Flat Major |
| C Minor Scale | C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭ | 3 flats (B♭ E♭ A♭) | Key of C Minor, relative to E Flat Major |
| F Sharp Minor Scale | F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D E | 3 sharps (F♯ C♯ G♯) | Key of F Sharp Minor, relative to A Major |
| C Sharp Minor Scale | C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A B | 4 sharps (F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯) | Key of C Sharp Minor, relative to E Major |
| F Minor Scale | F G A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ | 4 flats (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭) | Key of F Minor, relative to A Flat Major |
| B Flat Minor Scale | B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ | 5 flats (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭) | Key of B Flat Minor, relative to D Flat Major |
| G Sharp Minor Scale | G♯ A♯ B C♯ D♯ E F♯ | 5 sharps (F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯) | Key of G Sharp Minor, relative to B Major |
| E Flat Minor Scale | E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭ D♭ | 6 flats (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ C♭) | Key of E Flat Minor, relative to G Flat Major |
How to practice scales
- Hands separately, slowly. Right hand up and down twice, then left hand. Slow enough that you never have to correct a note.
- Watch the thumb. Every scale's difficulty is the thumb passing under, and every scale's evenness problem is the thumb arriving late. Practice the crossing on its own.
- Hands together, one octave. Only once each hand is comfortable alone.
- Two octaves, then four. Speed is the reward for accuracy, not the route to it.
- Play the chords of the key (see the key pages linked below) so the scale means something musically rather than mechanically.
Fifteen minutes a day beats an hour on Sunday. The point is that your hand learns the shape while you are not thinking about it, and that only happens with repetition spread over days.