Music scales are a vital part of a student's musical education. They help the student understand the patterns of sharps and flats in the tremendous array of music that they can play on the piano. And they train the student in fingering techniques and fluency in playing.

So often, though, students find it a nightmare to master all the scales facts and fingering patterns they need to learn for their examinations. All this would be so much easier if students noticed the clear patterns that exist in the structure of piano scales.

Scale Fingering

Did you realize that nearly half of the Major, Harmonic Minor and Melodic Minor Scales share just one fingering pattern?

This pattern, for the right hand ascending, is: 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5

And amongst the remaining scales, many clear patterns of fingering can also be seen that can help the observant student master those vital examination scales.

Scales Facts and Figures

How can you learn all the facts and figures about scales? For example:

-- The numbers of sharps and flats in each scale.

-- The order of the sharps and flats in the scales.

-- The order of the sharps and flats in the Key Signature.

-- The relative major and minor scales.

-- The tonic major and minor scales.

-- And so much more!

There are simple patterns to be found in all of this too, that occur over and over again throughout the scales facts you need to learn!

For example, there can be up to seven sharps written in the Key Signature of a piece of music. You will see these sharps written just after the treble or bass clef in sheet music.

How can you easily remember the order in which these seven sharps are written on the staff?

The order of the sharps written in the Key Signature is:

F C G D A E B

To remember this, just say:

Freddy Can Go Down And Eat Buns!

That's much easier than trying to learn the pattern off by heart, isn't it!

This same pattern can be seen in several other spots too amongst the facts and figures on music scales.

Paying attention to the clear patterns that exist in the structure of music scales can save the music student immense amounts of time and effort as they study for their music exams.