scale away

In this month’s column we’re going to be looking at the major scale and how it fits in with our exploration into the fundamentals of bass playing. As I always say to my students, not only does the major scale aid in developing economy of movement (in other words, getting around the fi ngerboard without too much hard work), but it also helps us to understand how an array of musical ideas work both melodically and tonally.

Firstly, what is the major scale and how can it be of use to us? Well, if you aren’t familiar with this term – and there’s no shame in admitting it – I’d be surprised if you didn’t recognise the sound of this scale. The first six notes of the infamous Eastenders theme tune are also the first 6 notes – ascending – of an Eb-major scale. In fact, the whole melody is constructed upon that same pool of notes. 

You probably also know ‘My Baby Just Cares For Me’ by Nina Simone. If you can sing that opening bass-line, then you can effectively sing most of a descending major scale. The same can be said for the chorus bass-line of the Jackson Five’s classic ‘I Want You Back’. The major 7th interval of this scale can also be heard in full effect in British soul legend Omar’s ‘There’s Nothing Like This’. 

An old, but useful, explanation of this scale is that, if you play from any C note on a piano keyboard up to the next available one, using only the white keys, you’ll have played the major scale. Very simply, a scale is a sequence of notes made up of a specifi c order of intervals, known as tones and semi-tones. Moving up a bass neck, fret by fret, is the same as moving semi-tone by semi-tone (commonly referred to as ‘chromatically’). The major scales are constructed of seven notes, with the eighth note (the octave) being the point in which the pattern begins again. The major scale is also known as the Ionian mode. 

A major scale can start on any note, but must follow the same construction of intervals for it to be ‘major’. In terms of tones and semi-tones, this would be tone, tone, semi-tone, tone, tone, tone, semi-tone. Each note of any scale has its own characteristics. The major scales are root, major 2nd, major 3rd, perfect 4th, perfect 5th, major 6th and major 7th.

Diagram time! Figure one is our C major scale. We can play this in more than one position, but we’ll start here for now. Take note of the suggested fingerings above each note position. Try playing this scale while alternating your right-hand fi ngers: index followed by middle fi nger and so forth (do it slowly!). If this is a bit of a struggle, take exactly the same pattern and begin on the eighth fret of the E string. This particular fi ngering pattern is one of the more versatile of the one-octave major scale shapes, and can be moved as desired as long as you start on the E or A strings. Figures two and three show the slight variations that you’ll need for playing this scale starting on either the open E or A strings, or their respective fi rst frets (F major and Bb major). Have fun, and I’ll see you next month!