SCALES

A scale is a sequence of notes that are ordered by their pitch and spans one octave. The word comes from the Latin word "scala", which means "ladder". Anyone who is learning to play a musical instrument must often practice playing the scales, not only to be intimate with the playing technique but also to memorize the note names that are present in different scales. 

Later, we shall learn about keys. Knowledge of keys is very important for learning harmony. Also, we shall learn that scales are strongly related to keys, but they are not the same.  

When we write a scale, we must choose an octave. Any convenient octave can be used. The next figure shows the C major scale in octave 4. When writing down scales, it is common practice to finish with the note with which we started, only an octave higher.

Figure: The C major scale