The
chromatic scale is a
musical scaleIn music, a scale is a sequence of musical notes in ascending and descending order. Most commonly, especially in the context of the common practice period, the notes of a scale will belong to a single key, thus providing material for or being used to conveniently represent part or all of a musical...
with twelve
pitchPitch is an auditory perceptual property that allows the ordering of sounds on a frequency-related scale.Pitches are compared as "higher" and "lower" in the sense associated with musical melodies,...
es, each a
semitoneA semitone, also called a half step or a half tone, is the smallest musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music, and it is considered the most dissonant when sounded harmonically....
apart. On a modern piano or other
equal-temperedAn equal temperament is a musical temperament, or a system of tuning, in which every pair of adjacent notes has an identical frequency ratio. As pitch is perceived roughly as the logarithm of frequency, this means that the perceived "distance" from every note to its nearest neighbor is the same for...
instrument, all the half steps are the same size. An equal tempered chromatic scale is a
nondiatonic scaleIn music theory, a diatonic scale is a seven note, octave-repeating musical scale comprising five whole steps and two half steps for each octave, in which the two half steps are separated from each other by either two or three whole steps...
having no
tonicIn music, the tonic is the first scale degree of the diatonic scale and the tonal center or final resolution tone. The triad formed on the tonic note, the tonic chord, is thus the most significant chord...
because of the
symmetryIn music, a symmetric scale is a music scale which equally divides the octave. The concept and term appears to have been introduced by Joseph Schillinger and further developed by Nicolas Slonimsky as part of his famous "Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns"...
of its equally spaced tones.
The most common conception of the chromatic scale before the 13th century was the
Pythagorean chromatic scalePythagorean tuning is a system of musical tuning in which the frequency relationships of all intervals are based on the ratio 3:2. This interval is chosen because it is one of the most consonant...
. Due to a different tuning technique, the twelve semitones in this scale have two slightly different sizes. Thus, the scale is not perfectly symmetric. Many other tuning systems, developed in the ensuing centuries, share a similar asymmetry. Equally spaced pitches are provided only by
equal temperamentAn equal temperament is a musical temperament, or a system of tuning, in which every pair of adjacent notes has an identical frequency ratio. As pitch is perceived roughly as the logarithm of frequency, this means that the perceived "distance" from every note to its nearest neighbor is the same for...
tuning systems, which are widely used in contemporary music.
The term
chromatic derives from the Greek word
chroma, meaning
color. Chromatic notes are traditionally understood as harmonically inessential embellishments, shadings, or inflections of
diatonicDiatonic and chromatic are terms in music theory that are most often used to characterize scales, and are also applied to intervals, chords, notes, musical styles, and kinds of harmony...
notes.
Notation
The chromatic scale may be notated in a variety of ways:
Ascending and descending:
The chromatic scale has no set spelling agreed upon by all. Its spelling is, however, often dependent upon
major or minorIn Western music, the adjectives major and minor can describe a musical composition, movement, section, scale, key, chord, or interval.Major and minor are frequently referred to in the titles of classical compositions, especially in reference to the key of a piece.-Intervals and chords:With regard...
key signatures and whether the scale is ascending or descending. The images above, therefore, are only examples of chromatic scale notations. As an abstract theoretical entity (that is, outside a particular musical context), the chromatic scale is usually notated such that no scale degree is used more than twice in succession (for instance G flat - G natural - G sharp).
Nonwestern cultures
- The ancient Chinese
Chinese Music has been made since the dawn of Chinese civilization with documents and artifacts providing evidence of a well-developed musical culture as early as the Zhou Dynasty...
chromatic scale is called Shi Er LüShí-èr-lǜ |pitches]]) is a standardized gamut of twelve notes. Also known, rather misleadingly, as the Chinese chromatic scale it is one kind of chromatic scale used in ancient Chinese music. The Chinese scale uses the same intervals as the Pythagorean scale, based on 2:3 ratios...
. However, "it should not be imagined that this gamut ever functioned as a scale, and it is erroneous to refer to the 'Chinese chromatic scale', as some Western writers have done. The series of twelve notes known as the twelve lü were simply a series of fundamental notesIn music, the tonic is the first scale degree of the diatonic scale and the tonal center or final resolution tone. The triad formed on the tonic note, the tonic chord, is thus the most significant chord...
from which scales could be constructed."
- The Indian
The music of India includes multiple varieties of folk, popular, pop, classical music and R&B. India's classical music tradition, including Carnatic and Hindustani music, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several eras. It remains fundamental to the lives of Indians today as...
solfègeIn music, solfège is a pedagogical solmization technique for the teaching of sight-singing in which each note of the score is sung to a special syllable, called a solfège syllable...
, i.e. sargamThe seven notes of the scale , in Indian music are named shadja, rishabh, gandhar, madhyam, pancham, dhaivat and nishad, and are shortened to Sa, Ri or Re , Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, and Ni and written S, R, G, M, P, D, N. Collectively these notes are known as the sargam...
, makes up the twelve notes of the chromatic scale with respective sharps and flats.
See also
- Chromaticism
Chromaticism is a compositional technique interspersing the primary diatonic pitches and chords with other pitches of the chromatic scale. Chromaticism is in contrast or addition to tonality or diatonicism...
- Chromatic circle
The chromatic circle is a geometrical space that shows relationships among the 12 equal-tempered pitch classes making up the familiar chromatic scale...
- Atonality
Atonality in its broadest sense describes music that lacks a tonal center, or key. Atonality in this sense usually describes compositions written from about 1908 to the present day where a hierarchy of pitches focusing on a single, central tone is not used, and the notes of the chromatic scale...
- 20th century music - Classical
- All Through the Night (Cole Porter song)
"All Through the Night" is a 1934 popular song written by Cole Porter for his 1934 musical Anything Goes. The melody's distinguishing characteristic is a descending chromatic scale, starting on "mi", interrupted by an octave jump after four bars....
- Hicaz Hümâyun Saz Semâisi
"Hicaz Hümâyun Saz Semâisi" is a piece of music written by Neyzen Yusuf Paşa that demonstrates the many ways that Turkish music and European music differ. The time signature of this song is in 10/8 and it features multiple Dal Segno signs. The key signature for the song is a C and a B.Another...
- Turkish song, highlighting differences from the twelve-semitone scale
External links