Below are the guidelines how to make songs using a # major scale. # major scales are define as having notes affected by a sharp. Below is a table to summarize the # major scales. To simplify the discussion only the most common # major scales are discussed namely: G-D-A-E-B. The F# major and C# is not very common in pop song writing.
To start with, please be familiar with table below below for the # major scales:
It is highly recommended to memorize this because it will be very easy to write a songs if you are very familiar with the notes affected. To memorize this the # major scales, just remember this mnemonics.
G – ” GO ”
D – ” DOWN ”
A – ” AND ”
E – ” EAT ”
B – ” BEFORE ”
F#- ” FATHER ”
C#- ” COMES ”
To memorize the notes affected just always remember this in a humming way: fa,do,so,re,la,mi,ti. Just those 7 notes affected memorize them and you will be fine.
To recall the notes affected for a certain major scale. Let say “E major”, counting with your fingers and recalling the mnemonics: “Go down and eat before father comes”. For “E major”, it is the 4th word in the mnemonic(sentence). Count your fingers up to 4 to find the notes affected: “fa-do-so-re”, therefore the notes affected will be “fa-do-so-re”.
Try that with other key signatures, do it everyday and in a lifetime you will memorize it and will be very good in songwriting.
The root note of the key is the associated note of the key. So for a key of G major, the root note is “so”.
The notes affected are the notes raised by half step. So for a key of G major, the notes is “fa”, so when “fa” is played on a G major scale, it will be “fa#”. Or else it will not sound like a G major scale.
For D major scale, the notes affected will now be “fa” and “do” so this means, when notes “fa” and “do” are played on a D major scale. It will be “fa#” and “do#”.
Triads are very useful notes when assigning chords in a series of notes in a song. In layman’s term, triad notes carries the sound of the chords. When a chord is played on a note that is not the chords/key signature triad, it is defined as “out of tune”. Also, the simplest way to understand “chords” are triads of a key signature. In non-formal music environment, key signature and major/minor scales can be used interchangeably.
Technically, Sharp major key signatures are sequences of sharps in the staff. In short, it visualizes the “notes affected” of the major scales.
For the common Sharp major key signatures and the placement of sharp in the staff, it is shown below:
G major scale/key signature:
D major scale/key signature:
E major scale /key signature:
B major scale/key signature:
Now that we know the notes affected and their location on the staff. We will proceed the techniques on how to utilize the major scales. There are simple rules to follow:
1. The number of sharps and the 1st note dictates the key signature of the song.
2. Chords are assigned to notes falling in their triad.
For example, we want to create a song in G major, 4/4 time signature. The chords assignment is some form of an art, and it will not be out of tune as long as the notes fall to the chords triad:
Let’s study the notes and how the chords come up. Chords are very useful when you want to sing a song in a guitar or piano. Most of the songs are performed by either these instruments and the best to accompany the song is to know the chords.
The following notes above are generated by Easy Music Composer Freeware, and their default does not have the classical key signature of G. There should be one sharp showing after the G-clef. Anyway the notes affected are correct.
The first note of the song is “ti”, and this note fall to the G major triad: so-ti-re, so when a chord “G” is being played on this note it will not sound out of tune.
Examine the notes affected, all “fa” notes are raised by half step (fa#) to follow the G major scale.
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