How to use the scale calculator
Choose a key and scale from the list, then press Calculate. The initial selection is C major, but no result is shown until you calculate. Each option includes both the tonic and the scale type, so C major and C natural minor are separate choices. The list covers all 15 standard key signatures for each type, including enharmonic alternatives such as F♯ major and G♭ major.
Read the notes from left to right. The final note repeats the tonic an octave higher; it is degree 8, not a new pitch class. Change the selection to compare another key, then calculate again. Changing a selection hides the previous result and disables Copy result. Clear removes the result and copy message while keeping the selected key. Copy result includes the written notes, signature, relative key and degree table as plain text.
The initial C-major preview appears beside the input before calculation. Selecting another key updates this preview but leaves confirmed results empty until Calculate. Clear retains the selected key and leaves the diagram frame marked — until a new selection or calculation.
Reading notes, signatures and steps
A major scale follows 2–2–1–2–2–2–1 semitones. Natural minor follows 2–1–2–2–1–2–2. A step of 2 is a whole tone; 1 is a half step. The diagram spaces semitones equally, so adjacent highlighted boxes are half steps and one unhighlighted box between tones indicates a whole step. The table connects each degree to its note name and cumulative distance from the tonic.
Each of the seven note letters appears once before the octave repeats. Accidentals preserve this spelling: F♯ major contains E♯, even though E♯ uses the same piano key as F in equal temperament. The signature lists altered notes in conventional signature order, which differs from ascending scale order. The relative key has the same signature but a different tonic and pattern.
Two examples to check
Choose D major. The notes are D, E, F♯, G, A, B, C♯, D; the signature has F♯ and C♯, and the relative key is B natural minor. The cumulative semitone distances are 0, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 12. The two half steps lie between degrees 3–4 and 7–8.
Choose E♭ natural minor. The notes are E♭, F, G♭, A♭, B♭, C♭, D♭, E♭; the signature has six flats and the relative major is G♭. C♭ is intentional, not a spelling error. Comparing G♭ major with F♯ major demonstrates the same equal-tempered pitch classes with different written letters.
Practice and supported scope
Use the table to check a written scale, plan a practice sequence, or compare relative major and minor keys. Say the letter names as well as the accidentals: recognizing that a scale requires seven distinct letters is more useful than memorizing only black and white piano keys. The diagram is a chromatic distance strip, not a playable keyboard or a fingering recommendation.
This tool supports signatures with at most seven sharps or seven flats. It excludes theoretical keys requiring double accidentals, harmonic and melodic minor, modes, chord generation, audio recognition and composition. Note names use international C–D–E letter notation in every language; B means B natural, not the German B-flat convention. The result describes note spelling and intervals, not a recording or a measured tuning.
Frequently asked questions
Why do F♯ and G♭ sound alike?
They are enharmonic names for the same pitch class in 12-tone equal temperament. Their written scales and key signatures differ.
Is the relative minor the same as the parallel minor?
No. C major has A minor as its relative minor. C minor shares the tonic with C major but has a different signature.
Does minor raise the seventh?
Natural minor does not. Raising the seventh would create harmonic minor, which is outside this calculator.
Why is there no sound or saved exercise?
This is a note and interval reference. Copy the confirmed table into your notes; the page does not record audio or save your practice history.