RCM Theory - Level 7
Breve rest
* a double whole rest * sometimes used for a full measure of silence in 4/2, 9/4, and 12/4
F Major scale
1 flat
Time Signature: 2/8
2 eighth note beats per bar
Bb Major scale
2 flats
Time Signature: 2/2
2 half note beats per bar
Time Signature: 2/4
2 quarter note beats per bar
D Major scale
2 sharps
Time Signature: 3/8
3 eighth note beats per bar
Eb Major scale
3 flats
Time Signature: 3/2
3 half note beats per bar
Time Signature: 3/4
3 quarter note beats per bar
Time Signature: 4/8
4 eighth note beats per bar
C Major scale
No sharps or flats
Mediant
The scale degree name for notes starting on the third note of the scale
Grand staff
a pair of five-line staffs connected by a brace that contain the music for a single instrument
Staff
a set of five horizontal lines and four spaces that each represent different musical pitch
Notes moving by step
difference in pitch between two consecutive notes of a musical scale
Chromatic scales, starting on any pitch (using key signatures and/or accidentals)
It is constructed entirely of half steps. It consists of 12 different pitches and all the notes are separated by the same interval. The pitches will always be the same, but the accidentals used may vary. This scale is often used as transitions from one section to another and to display the virtuosity of the performer. When composers draw on scales in their music, they often use fragments of the scale rather than complete scales. To write this scale: • Build a series of half steps using accidentals to raise notes when ascending and to lower them when descending • Use a bar line after the upper tonic to cancel all previously used accidentals • Do not use more than 2 notes with the same letter name consecutively within the ascending or descending segment • Do not change the starting note enharmonically
Whole-tone scales, starting on any pitch (using key signatures and/or accidentals)
It is constructed of entirely whole steps. It consists of 6 different pitches and all the notes are separated by the same interval. It can also be referred to as a hexatonic scale. Hexa is Greek fo "six". This scale may start on any pitch and can be notated in various ways. Six different letter names are used and at one point in the sequence a letter name will be missing. The diminished third that results is the enharmonic equivalent of the major second interval. The placement of the diminished third may vary. This scale is used in the works of 20th-century composers including Claude Debussy, Béla Bartók, and Olivier Messiaen. When composers draw on scales in their music, they often use fragments of the scale rather than complete scales. To write this scale: • Build a series of whole steps using accidentals as required • Do not change the starting note enharmonically
Octatonic scales, starting on any pitch (using key signatures and/or accidentals)
This scale consists of 8 different pitches that alternate half steps and whole steps. Octa is Latin for "eight." It may begin with either a half step or whole step and can be notated using sharps, flats, or a combination of both, depending on its context in the music. There are only 3 possible forms (or transpositions) of this scale. This scale is used by 20th-century composers including Debussy, Bartók, Messiaen, and Igor Stravinsky. It is also used in European folk music. In the jazz tradition, it is referred to as the diminished scale. When composers draw on scales in their music, they often use fragments of the scale rather than complete scales. To write this scale: • Alternate half steps with whole steps, beginning with either interval: o H-W-H-W-H-W-H-W o (OR) W-H-W-H-W-H-W-H • Do not change the starting note enharmonically • One of the half steps will be written as a chromatic half step
D Minor scale
* Natural Form: 1 flat * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
E Minor scale
* Natural Form: 1 sharp * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
G Minor scale
* Natural Form: 2 flats * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
B Minor scale
* Natural Form: 2 sharps * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
C Minor scale
* Natural Form: 3 flats * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
F# Minor scale
* Natural Form: 3 sharps * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
F Minor scale
* Natural Form: 4 flats * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
C# Minor scale
* Natural Form: 4 sharps * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
G# Minor scale / Ab Minor scale
* Natural Form: 5 sharps / 7 flats * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
D# Minor scale / Eb Minor scale
* Natural Form: 6 sharps / 6 flats * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
A# Minor scale / Bb Minor scale
* Natural Form: 7 sharps / 5 flats * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
A Minor scale
* Natural Form: No sharps or flats * Harmonic Form: raise the 7th note a semi-tone on the way up and down * Melodic Form: raise the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way up. Lower the 6th and 7th note a semi-tone on the way down.
G Major scale
1 sharp
A Major scale
3 sharps
Ab Major scale
4 flats
Time Signature: 4/2
4 half note beats per bar
Time Signature: 4/4
4 quarter note beats per bar
E Major scale
4 sharps
B Major scale / Cb Major scale
5 sharps / 7 flats
F# Major scale / Gb Major scale
6 sharps / 6 flats
C# Major scale / Db Major scale
7 sharps / 5 flats
Notes moving by skip
A step is the difference in pitch between two consecutive notes of a musical scale. Anything larger than that is this
Diatonic half step
Contain half step motions but use different letter names. For example: E and F, F# and G, and A and Bb
Chromatic half step
Contain the same letter name. For instance, C and C#, Eb and E, and G and G#
Functional Chord Symbol: V7
Dominant 7th note of a major key
Functional Chord Symbol: V
Dominant note of a major key
Relative major and minor keys (including enharmonic equivalents)
From the major key, count up by 6, including the tonic note
Functional Chord Symbol: IV
Subdominant note of a major key
Dominant
The scale degree name for notes starting on the fifth note of the scale
Tonic
The scale degree name for notes starting on the first note of the scale
Subdominant
The scale degree name for notes starting on the fourth note of the scale
Supertonic
The scale degree name for notes starting on the second note of the scale
Leading tone
The scale degree name for notes starting on the seventh note of major scales and harmonic minor scales
Subtonic
The scale degree name for notes starting on the seventh note of natural form minor scales
Submediant
The scale degree name for notes starting on the sixth note of the scale
Functional Chord Symbol: I
Tonic note of a major key
Scale degree numbers
^1 - ^8
Bass clef
a clef placing the F below middle C on the fourth line of the staff
Treble clef
a clef that places G above middle C on the second line of the staff
Measure
a group of notes and rests, separated from other groups by vertical lines, into which a line of written music is divided
Parallel major and minor keys (including enharmonic equivalents)
a minor scale that start on the same tonic as the major key. It will always have a different key signature.
Upbeat (anacrusis)
a note or series of notes that comes before the first complete measure of a composition; an introductory (and optional) measure that does not hold the number of beats expressed by the time signature.
Time Signature: 12/8
compound meter 12 eighth note beats per bar
Time Signature: 12/4
compound meter 12 quarter note beats per bar
Time Signature: 12/16
compound meter 12 sixteenth note beats per bar
Time Signature: 6/8
compound meter 6 eighth note beats per bar
Time Signature: 6/4
compound meter 6 quarter note beats per bar
Time Signature: 6/16
compound meter 6 sixteenth note beats per bar
Time Signature: 9/8
compound meter 9 eighth note beats per bar
Time Signature: 9/4
compound meter 9 quarter note beats per bar
Time Signature: 9/16
compound meter 9 sixteenth note beats per bar
Major pentatonic scales, starting on any pitch (using key signatures and/or accidentals)
o This scale consists of 5 different pitches. Penta is Greek for "five." They are widely used in the music of many different cultures and traditions. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, composers used them to evoke the exotic cultures of faraway lands. More recently, they have been embraced as a melodic source in classical, jazz, and popular styles. To write this scale: • Write a major scale, omitting ^4 and ^7 • The resulting pattern will be: maj 2, maj 2, min 3, maj 2, min 3
Minor pentatonic scales, starting on any pitch (using key signatures and/or accidentals)
o This scale consists of 5 different pitches. Penta is Greek for "five." They are widely used in the music of many different cultures and traditions. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, composers used them to evoke the exotic cultures of faraway lands. More recently, they have been embraced as a melodic source in classical, jazz, and popular styles. To write this scale: • Write a minor scale, natural form, omitting ^2 and ^6 • The resulting pattern will be: min 3, maj 2, maj 2, min 3, maj 2
Blues scales, starting on any pitch (using key signatures and/or accidentals)
o This scale consists of 6 different pitches. It can be referred to as a hexatonic scale. It is used in jazz and blues styles. To write a this scale: • Write a minor pentatonic scale, adding either a raised ^4 or lowered ^5 (adding a half step between ^4 and ^5 of the original minor scale) • The resulting pattern will be: min 3, maj 2, min 2, min 2, min 3, maj 3
Triad structure: Fifth
the fifth note of any scale
Triad structure: Root
the first note of any scale
Notes that repeat
the same note is played again
Triad structure: Third
the third note of any scale
Bar line
the vertical line marking the boundary between one bar and the next
Melodic intervals up to and including an octave
two notes are played in sequence, one after the other.
Harmonic intervals up to and including an octave
two notes are played together at the same time