Does this scale have a name/what key is this?

Here is a wild guess:

Key of A Major would have A (I), B (ii), C# (iii), D (IV), E (V), F# (vi), G# (Vii)

The Dorian mode is based on the second note of the major (Ionian) scale, in this case B. (The theory purists are cringing, but whatever. :lol: )

So B Dorian would contain the following notes:

B - C# - D - E - F# - G# - A

If that's correct, then in your case you have the I, ii, IV, IV and Vii of B Dorian.

Someone will soon be along to explain why it could be one of about 30 other possible scales, including the double-secret Dog Whisperer scale in the key of !@#$% and known only to three living people hiding in the hills of Tibet.

But I'll say B Dorian.

The notes seem to fit F#min pentatonic

F#maj
F#, G#, A#, B, C#, D#, E#, F#

F#min
F#, G#, A, B, C#, D, E, F#

F#min Pentatonic
F#, A, B, C#, E, F#

ON THE OTHER HAND (ha!)

Going back to the A major scale, you've got the I, ii, iii, V and vi of A major, which would make it A Major Pentatonic.

Plain and simple!

This is where I start going on about how scales and modes were designed only to perpetuate elitism in our society and how we'd all be better of just following the chord tones ... but I won't do that today.

The notes seem to fit F#min pentatonic

Absolutely that one too! F# being the natural minor of A maj. Or something like that. Yeah!

It's in the key of E - varying between major and minor
Intro = E major (with add 9 chord)
Verses = E minor (more precisely E dorian - because of F#m, A and Bm chords giving a raised 6th note (C#) but not a raised seventh (D). So my preferred scale choice for the verses is E dorian (E F# G A B C# D)
Middle section key is E major
Ending E major (add9 chord again)

Wow - All answers different. Hope you don't end up more confused than you started Margaret - As you see there's more than one scale choice possible :lol:

Thank you all for those responses! Those give me some more things to try.

I'm reassured that at least it's not so obvious that I should be totally ashamed for not being able to figure it out. :lol:

As I played around with it, I couldn't decide which sounded more like the root, an F# or a B, but then E entered into it, too, as the first note sounds like an E to me. (coinciding with Fretsource's assertion of E major for the intro).

I think it's a catchy and interesting BT, not just the run-of-the-mill thing.

Thanks again for the info. I'll let you know when I've digested it all. :D

Margaret

Can anyone tell me if this is a known scale of any kind?

B C# E F# A B
Exact matches:
- F# Pentatonic Minor F#,A,B,C#,E
- A Pentatonic Major A,B,C#,E,F#
- B Pentatonic Neutral B,C#,E,F#,A (aka Egyptian)

Scales with more notes that it could be part of - 85, so I'll just show you how to get to them instead of list 'em :wink:
- go to http://chordsandscales.co.uk/finder
- check the box for each of the above notes
- choose 'scales' in the first selection
- choose 'superset' in the second
- click 'find'

Whatever it is, it sounds cool playing around with it on the Hammond! :D

Yes, it is a cool track, isn't it, Ricochet?

Thanks, Mis. I figured there was a way to look up scales that way, but hadn't figured it out yet.

Fretsource, so I understand which sections you are saying are E major and which are E minor, is this the way one might diagram it?

Intro - 4 bars (E Major)

Verse 1 - 12 bars (E minor)

Verse 2 - 12 bars (E minor)

Middle section - 12 bars (E Major)

Verse 3 - 12 bars (E minor)

Verse 4 - 12 bars (E minor)

Outro - 2 bars (back to E Major??)

Thx!

Margaret

Yeah - That looks exactly right as I remember it Margaret. (I don't have access to the music right now).

As Misanthrope showed, there are lots of scales that fit but you should choose one that is named in relation to the key. I say 'named' because they're the same notes - just a different starting place. If you're in the key of E major or E minor as in this song, then it's not helpful to think of your scale as the A mongolian whatever. Your main scale choice should be an E something because you're in the key of E something.

Yeah - That looks exactly right as I remember it Margaret. (I don't have access to the music right now).

As Misanthrope showed, there are lots of scales that fit but you should choose one that is named in relation to the key. I say 'named' because they're the same notes - just a different starting place. If you're in the key of E major or E minor as in this song, then it's not helpful to think of your scale as the A mongolian whatever. Your main scale choice should be an E something because you're in the key of E something.

OK, thanks! Back to Misanthrope's chordsandscales to look up some of those E scales.

Margaret

OK, thanks! Back to Misanthrope's chordsandscales to look up some of those E scales.

The reason no E scale showed up in that shortlist of exact matches is because you missed out two more notes that also sound good with that song's verse, namely: D & G. If you add them to your collection and start the sequence from E to correspond with the key, you get:
E F# G A B C# D E - which is E dorian.

This is a very interesting discussion for me as I'm the one that created this backing track and it will help me understand what I did.
I developped it while noodling on the guitar with the Em and E add9 (not sure of this one, my MIDI software gives me E2) chords at this position:
E---------3-------|-----2------
B---------5-------|-----5------
G---------4-------|-----4------
D-----------------|-------------
A-----------------|-------------
E-----------------|-------------

The chords for this track go as follows:
The intro is E2 and Em with the bass note as a B. (4 bars total)
Then the 2 main chords on this one are Em and F#m.(8bars total)
Followed by the 2nd section Em, A, Bm, Em (4 bars, 2 beats each chords ) and then A for 2 bars.
The 3rd section (bridge) is C#m7, G#m, F#m, B, C#m7, G#m, F#m, F#m(8bars total) then A, B, B4 (3bars), B (2beats), B4, B (1 beat each)
It ends with the same chords as the Intro.

As I mentionned, my software gives E2 and B4 as names for those 2 chords. I'd say E2 is E add9 and B4 would be B aug (or 'B+'? The D# (5th) note raised to E)

With that info, does it still fit with the E Dorian scale?
The bridge would be something else though, no?
I'd guess a Bm scale of some sort?

I don't want to impose, this is Margaret's thread after all, but if I may push it a little, this is what I soloed (is that a word?)over this backing track. If someone have time to listen to it and tell me if what I played fits the E dorian mode or whatever scale/mode I played?
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/songInfo.cfm?bandID=376384&songID=3560402

This is actually the 1st time I ever thought of asking this question.
I would really appreciate understading a bit more what I'm doing by feel.

Thanks, Yves

Hi Yves
Yes - the E2 is like E add 9, even if the third (G#) is missing, it's there in spirit. The notes G# and then G harmonise really well with that opening. It opens in E although it varies between major and minor and no real key is established until it gets to the verse Em - F#m etc.

This is is the part that the dorian mode fits exactly. It's in the key of E minor as far as the key is concerned but more precisely it's E dorian because of the chords you used. E dorian has a raised 6th degree (C# instead of C) and an unraised 7th degree (D instead of D#) and your chords contain exactly those notes. A major and F# minor contain the C# note and B minor contains the D. There are no C or D# notes which we would expect if it was in a straightforward E minor.

So it fits perfectly with E dorian.

I didn't get as far as suggesting a scale for the mid section. But NOT E dorian because of the G# which is very prominent at the start of that section. That would clash with the dorian mode's G natural horribly. It looks like I misheard C#m7 for E6 (Sorry Margaret). They have the same notes but different roots. So if there's no actual E chord in the middle section then its better classed as the relative minor of E major: C#m, which has the same chords and so the same scales will work with it, such as C# natural minor (or pentatonic minor).

Edit: The B4 isn't a B augmented chord - It's just a decoration on the B chord, as its third (not fifth) is raised to the fourth temporarily. (D# to E)