The course › Unit 7: Sharps, flats and intervals
Lesson 42 of 72 · W W H W or W H W W: two colors, bright and dark
Change just one note of the major pentascale: lower the 3rd note (the one under finger 3) by a half step. The pattern becomes W H W W: that’s the minor pentascale.
In C: C D E F G becomes C D E♭ F G. Listen: major sounds bright, minor darker, more wistful. Many listeners hear it that way, even though every piece of music shades that impression in its own way.
C minor: finger 3 moves down to E♭.
Why this way: Listen before you name: you can hear the difference between major and minor long before you understand it. Ear-first approaches (Kodály, Gordon) always start from sound; words come afterwards, to put a label on what you’ve already felt.
Play the five notes going up, one per finger. Count the distances: W W H W for major, W H W W for minor.
To go from major to minor, just lower finger 3 by a half step. Here are the six pentascales to know:
Tip: In C, G and F major, finger 3 is on a white key, which becomes a black key in minor. In D, A and E major, it’s on a black key, which becomes a white key in minor.
The same little melody in D major, then in D minor: only finger 3 changes keys (F♯, then F). Listen to the color change!
The computer plays a pentascale, major or minor. The first note lights up: play the five notes back, and choose the 3rd carefully!
The five notes of the D minor pentascale (D, E, F, G, A) are lit up. Make up a dark, mysterious melody, with long notes and rests, and end your phrases on D.