Unit 2-1: Tonality, Major and Minor Scales

Lesson Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

Understand the fundamental concepts and characteristics of tonal music.
Identify the key of a major or minor excerpt and explain why that key is implied.
Describe the functional scale degree names for the Western major and minor scales.
Transpose a melody into major or minor (review).

Preparation for Class

Read:

"Tonality" (pp. 21–24) in Music Theory in Mind and Culture (Geyer)
Optional: If you'd like a review of Western major and minor scales, see the overview in the Fundamentals text here for Major and Minor. Complete practice, as needed. (See the practice sections on these pages).

Watch

Title image for the Music and the Brain video series. Includes the text "Music and the Brain" and a woman listening to music with headphones.

Arousing Expectations
(Aniruddh Patel, 31 mins)

Watch and Consider:

What is tonality?
What are some of the parallels between language and musical syntax?
What does scale construction have to do with musical expectation, and how does expectation affect emotional responses to music?

Study Aids & References

Key Signatures for all Major and Minor Keys

An image showing the circle of fifths with major and minor key signatures, arranged by the number of accidentals (sharps or flats) in the key signature. The chart is divided into two sections: the top half lists keys with flats, while the bottom half lists keys with sharps.Each key signature is represented by musical notation with the corresponding number of sharps or flats, followed by the names of the associated major and minor keys.

Order of accidentals:

Order of sharps: F, C, G, D, A, E, B (Mnemonic: Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle)
Order of flats: B, E, A, D, G, C, F (Mnemonic: Battle Ends And Down Goes Charle's Father) (Or, the first 4 flats spell "bead")

3 Different Methods for Memorizing Your Key Signatures:

An instructional graphic explaining 'Method 1: Finding the minor key using the parallel major.' The method involves adding 3 sharps (or subtracting 3 flats) from any minor key to find the corresponding major key with the same tonic, known as the parallel minor. The image is divided into four sections: The top left section describes the method in text, emphasizing that parallel keys are related by 3 sharps or flats. The top right section provides an example with F# minor. A diagram at the top shows a number line ranging from -7 (7 flats) to 7 (7 sharps). F# minor, with 3 sharps, is highlighted at position 3 on the number line. The graphic then shows that by adding 3 sharps (+3), you reach position 6, corresponding to F# major. Below, the key signatures of F# minor and F# major are shown with the steps: 3 + 3 = 6 What major key has 6 sharps? - F# major So, the minor key is F# minor. The bottom left section shows another example with F minor. The number line highlights -4 (F minor with 4 flats), and after adding 3 (+3), you reach -1, corresponding to F major. The key signatures for F minor and F major are displayed with the steps: -4 + 3 = -1 What major key has 1 flat? - F major So, the minor key is F minor. The bottom right section uses D minor as the example. D minor, with 1 flat, is highlighted at -1 on the number line. Adding 3 sharps (+3) brings you to position 2, corresponding to D major. The key signatures for D minor and D major are displayed with the steps: -1 + 3 = 2 What major key has 2 sharps? - D major So, the minor key is D minor.

Method 2: Memorize Half of the Keys. The accidentals in both the major and minor keys all sum to 7 if the key starts with the same letter.

An image illustrating the relationship between major and minor key signatures, showing how pairs of major and minor keys sum to seven accidentals when combined. The image is divided into two sections: 'Major' on the left and 'Minor' on the right. The left section lists major keys, organized by the number of flats or sharps: G-flat major = 6 flats, paired with G major = 1 sharp D-flat major = 5 flats, paired with D major = 2 sharps A-flat major = 4 flats, paired with A major = 3 sharps E-flat major = 3 flats, paired with E major = 4 sharps B-flat major = 2 flats, paired with B major = 5 sharps F major = 1 flat, paired with F-sharp major = 6 sharps C major = 0 accidentals, paired with C-sharp major = 7 sharps or C-flat major = 7 flats A red arrow labeled 'These all sum to 7' points from the flat keys to their corresponding sharp keys, indicating that the sum of flats and sharps for each pair equals 7. The right section lists minor keys, similarly organized: E-flat minor = 6 flats, paired with E minor = 1 sharp B-flat minor = 5 flats, paired with B minor = 2 sharps F minor = 4 flats, paired with F-sharp minor = 3 sharps C minor = 3 flats, paired with C-sharp minor = 4 sharps G minor = 2 flats, paired with G-sharp minor = 5 sharps D minor = 1 flat, paired with D-sharp minor = 6 sharps A minor = 0 accidentals, paired with A-sharp minor = 7 sharps or A-flat minor = 7 flats Another red arrow labeled 'These all sum to 7' points from the flat keys to their corresponding sharp keys, similar to the major keys.

Method 3: Look at the last accidental in the key signature.

A diagram titled "Sharp Keys" and "Flat Keys" with examples of major key signatures. The image is divided into two sections: sharp keys on top and flat keys on the bottom. Sharp Keys Section: Key: C# major The staff has seven sharps: F#, C#, G#, D#, A#, E#, and B#. There is an arrow pointing to the last sharp (B#) with the label "B#". Text below the staff reads: "The note above the last sharp is your key. Here the last note is B#, the key is C# major (note the C# previously in the key signature)." Key: A major The staff has three sharps: F#, C#, and G#. An arrow points to the last sharp (G#) with the label "G#". Text below the staff reads: "(Note that this is not A# major since there is no A# in the key.)" Key: G major The staff has one sharp: F#. An arrow points to the sharp with the label "F#". Text below the staff simply reads: "Key: G major." Flat Keys Section: Key: Ab major The staff has four flats: Bb, Eb, Ab, and Db. An arrow points to the second-to-last flat (Ab) with the label "Ab". Text below the staff reads: "If I subtract the last flat, the one second-to-last one gives me the key, Ab." Key: Gb major The staff has six flats: Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, and Cb. An arrow points to the second-to-last flat (Gb) with the label "Gb". Text below the staff reads: "Key: Gb major." Key: F major The staff has one flat: Bb. Text below the staff reads: "No second-to-last flat here, this key I just have to memorize!" On the left side, the word "Major" is written vertically next to both sections.

A diagram showing examples of minor key signatures, with explanatory text on how to identify the key. The word "Minor" is written vertically on the left side. Key: A# minor The staff has seven sharps: F#, C#, G#, D#, A#, E#, and B#. An arrow points to the last sharp (B#) with the label "B#". Text below the staff reads: "The note below the last sharp is your key. Here the last note is B#, the key is A# minor (note the A# previously in the key signature)." Key: F# minor The staff has three sharps: F#, C#, and G#. An arrow points to the last sharp (G#) with the label "G#". Text below the staff simply reads: "Key: F# minor." Key: E minor The staff has one sharp: F#. An arrow points to the sharp with the label "F#". Text below the staff reads: "(Note that this is not E# minor since there is no E# in the key.)"

This is an image of the circle of fifths. It is used to represent relationships between musical key signatures. The circle is divided into an outer ring of major keys and an inner ring of minor keys, each section representing a different key. The outer ring lists Major Keys, beginning with C at the top (12 o'clock position), and moving clockwise to G, D, A, E, B, F♯, D♭/C♯, A♭, E♭, B♭, and F. The inner ring lists Minor Keys corresponding to the major keys: starting at the top, A minor (for C major) and moving clockwise to E, B, F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯/B♭, G minor, D minor, and F minor. Key Signatures: Around the outside of the circle are musical key signatures for each major key, depicted on a staff with either sharps (♯) or flats (♭). Moving clockwise, sharp keys increase the number of sharps, while counterclockwise, flat keys increase the number of flats. At the top, C major/A minor has no sharps or flats. G major/E minor has one sharp. D major/B minor has two sharps, continuing around the circle. Moving counterclockwise, F major/D minor has one flat, B♭ major/G minor has two flats, and so on. Directional Arrows: Two arrows indicate how the circle progresses. An arrow pointing counterclockwise to the left, labeled "down by 5th," explains how to add flats (♭) and remove sharps (♯) when moving to the next key in that direction. An arrow pointing clockwise to the right, labeled "up by 5th," explains how to add sharps and remove flats when moving to the next key.

Pre-Class Assignment

Assignment 2-1

In-Class Activities

Discussion

Defining Western Tonality: What exactly does it mean for something to be "in C" (major or minor)? In other words, what is it that makes something tonal (in the Western Art Music definition of the word)? What makes a melody or harmonic progression sound like it's in a particular key?
- - Open the JamBoard here to brainstorm ideas as a group (or as a class). Add blue sticky notes to the board to suggest ideas. One idea is provided as an example (e.g. "The melody begins and ends on C.") [make a copy to edit]
  - Then, consider counter arguments that break holes in your theories or suggest that there's more going on. A counter argument is provided (e.g. "Lots of melodies don't necessarily begin and/or end on Do.") Listen to the melody provided as a counter example. Try to sing Do. Even though it doesn't end on Do, are you able to guess it?
  - Continue revising your theories as you work, adding additional blue sticky notes to work out a definition. Summarize the arguments as a group.

Transposition: What is melodic transposition and what are some of the reasons that a musician might need to be able transpose a melody? Discuss the various applications of this skill to different types of musical careers in performance, composition, songwriting, education, music technology, etc.
Is Minor Sad?: How do major and minor modes evoke different emotional responses in music? How does mode shape our perception? Is the minor mode sad?
Major & Minor Modes in Popular Music: A number of studies have demonstrated a shift from major to minor modes in American Top 40's popular music. (See the figures below.) The study represented on the left (below) looked at over 1,000 Top 40 recordings over 25 years. The number of songs in the major mode dropped from 86% to 42%. Tempos also dropped and songs became longer. Another study (with data shown below on the right), looked at just the Top 40 hits from 2017. This study found that 60% of the songs were in minor (or a minor mode) and that 80% of the songs that hit #1 on Billboard Top 5 were in minor.
- - How would you interpret this data in light of your discussion about major and minor mode above?

The image is a table titled: Descriptive Statistics for Mode, Tempo, Duration, and Gender Listed Separately for Each Decade. It presents data for five decades (1965–2009) across four categories: "% Major" (percentage of songs in a major key), "Mean tempo" (in beats per minute, BPM), "Mean duration" (in seconds), and "% Male" (percentage of male performers). There is a note at the bottom clarifying that tempo was measured in BPM and duration was measured in seconds. For the period 1965–1969: % Major: 85.0% Mean tempo: 116.4 beats per minute (BPM) Mean duration: 176.9 seconds % Male: 79.0% For the period 1975–1979: % Major: 75.1% Mean tempo: 103.0 BPM Mean duration: 225.3 seconds % Male: 66.2% For the period 1985–1989: % Major: 78.0% Mean tempo: 104.2 BPM Mean duration: 256.8 seconds % Male: 63.0% For the period 1995–1999: % Major: 62.7% Mean tempo: 89.4 BPM Mean duration: 248.2 seconds % Male: 55.5% For the period 2005–2009: % Major: 42.5% Mean tempo: 99.9 BPM Mean duration: 230.7 seconds % Male: 61.7%

Table 2 from Schellenberg, E. Glenn, and Christian von Scheve. "Emotional cues in American popular music: Five decades of the Top 40." Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts 6, no. 3 (2012): 196.

The image is a bar graph titled “KEYS (TOTAL)” that visually represents the total number of major and minor keys in 2017 Billboard top 5 songs. The graph has a y-axis labeled with values 0, 2, 4, and 6, which corresponds to the number of keys. The x-axis lists the different musical keys: A, Bb, B, C, C#, D, Eb, E, F, F#/Gb, G, and Ab. Two categories are represented: Major (turquoise bars) Minor (purple bars) Detailed Breakdown: A: No major keys, 5 minor keys. Bb: No major keys, 2 minor keys. B: No major keys, 2 minor keys. C: 3 major keys, 1 minor key. C#: No major keys, 3 minor keys. D: 3 major keys, 3 minor keys. Eb: 1 major key, 2 minor keys. E: No major keys, 3 minor keys. F: 1 major key, 1 minor key. F#/Gb: No major or minor keys (1 total key). G: 3 major keys, 2 minor keys. Ab: 3 major keys, 2 minor keys. On the right side, there is a table summarizing the total number of major and minor keys for each note: A: 0 major, 5 minor, total 5 Bb: 0 major, 2 minor, total 2 B: 0 major, 2 minor, total 2 C: 3 major, 1 minor, total 4 C#: 0 major, 3 minor, total 3 D: 3 major, 3 minor, total 6 Eb: 1 major, 2 minor, total 3 E: 0 major, 3 minor, total 3 F: 1 major, 1 minor, total 2 F#/Gb: 0 major, 1 minor, total 1 G: 3 major, 2 minor, total 5 Ab: 3 major, 2 minor, total 5 The bar heights correspond to the totals in the table.

Dean Olivet, Keys (Total) from "I broke down every song that reached the billboard Top 5 in 2017" (2018). (See also the 2018 comparison study here).

Activities

Identifying Keys in Music: How do you determine what the major or minor key of an excerpt is? Work together in groups or as a class to identify the key of each musical excerpt. For each example, list at least three different musical clues that support your response. (See the links to the Anthology below for practice examples).
Scale Step Names: There are three common way to identify steps in major and minor scales: 1) Scale degree numbers (e.g. 1, 2, 3...), 2) Solfege (e.g. Do, Re, Mi..), and 3) Functional names (Tonic, Supertonic, Mediant...). Review each of these in groups or as a class.
- - For a quick check, use the flashcard set here on Quizlet to review Functional Names as a group.
Transposition: What are the basic steps for transposing a melody from one key into another? How do these steps vary if you're transposing up or down by an interval? Work through a few transposition examples together as a class and in small groups. (See the links to the Anthology below for practice examples).

Repertoire for Practice

Examples for Key ID: This section of the anthology includes excerpts in major and minor for practicing key ID.
Examples for Transposition: Practice transposing the melodies to different keys specified by your instructor. Be sure to write the scale degrees/solfege above each pitch before you transpose the melody.

Anthology: Key ID

Anthology: Transposition

NEXT STEP

Next Lesson: Modes

Want to learn more?

Scale Perception Across Cultures: Why do we hear certain intervals as consonant or dissonant, and is this perception universal across cultures? How does has perception of consonance and dissonance influenced scale construction? Are there universals in scale structure across cultures? Check out Dr. Patel's video "Consonance, Dissonance, and Musical Scales" from the series Music and the Brain (and pp. 55–63 in the Study Guide).

Or, check out these articles:

David Huron and Elizabeth Hellmuth Margulis, “Musical Expectancy and Thrills,” in Handbook of Music and Emotion: Theory, Research, Applications, edited by Juslin, Patrik N., and John Sloboda. (Oxford University Press, 2011.
Daniel L. Bowling and Dale Purves, “A Biological Rationale for Musical Consonance," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 112, no. 36 (September 8, 2015).

Consonance, Dissonance, and Musical Scales
(31 mins)

Optional Additional Practice

Musition:
- - Scales (Levels 1a–1c)
  - Key/Mode ID (Levels 1a–1c)
  - Key Signatures (All Levels)

Auralia:
- Scales: Level 1

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