C# Major Scale - Emily Learning Music

C# Major Scale it starts and ends with C#. C# Major scale is also more commonly known as D flat major scale. This is because C# Major and D flat Major scales are essentially the same, since C# and D flat are enharmonic equivalents.

In C# Major scale, it has 7 sharps in its key signature. This means every single note is a sharp. The relative minor of C# Major is A# minor.

C# Major Key Signature

Here’s the key signature for C# Major. Notice that it has 7 sharps. This means that every note is a sharp in C# Major.

Notes in the Scale of C# Major

When we play a scale, we usually start off with an ascending scale (the notes get higher), followed by descending scale (the notes get lower).

Ascending scale of C# Major: C#, D#, E#, F#, G#, A#, B#, C#

Descending scale of C# Major: C#, B#, A#, G#, F#, E#, D#, C#

Degrees of the Scale

Degrees of the scale refers to the number we assign to each note of a scale. When we are assigning degrees of a scale, we look at the scale in ascending order. Here are the notes for the various degrees of the C# Major scale:

1st degree: C#

2nd degree: D#

3rd degree: E#

4th degree: F#

5th degree: G#

6th degree: A#

7th degree: B#

Technical Names of Notes in C# Major

Instead of using the degree of the scale, we can also use technical names of notes.

tonic – C#

supertonic – D#

mediant – E#

subdominant – F#

dominant – G#

submediant – A#

leading note – B#

Semitones and Tones

In all major scales, they follow this:

Pairs of notes	Tone or semitone apart?
1st -> 2nd	tone
2nd -> 3rd	tone
3rd -> 4th	semitone
4th -> 5th	tone
5th -> 6th	tone
6th -> 7th	tone
7th -> 8th	semitone

Most adjacent pairs of notes in the major scale are a tone apart, except for the 3rd to 4th note, and the 7th to the 8th note. This doesn’t apply just to C# Major scale, but for ALL major scales. By knowing the distance between the notes in a Major scale, we can form any major scale even if we do not know its key signature.

In this case, the semitones are found here:

From E# to F# (3rd to 4th note)
From B# to C# (7th to 8th note)

C# Major on different clefs.

Here’s how the C# Major scales look like in treble clef (without key signature). I’ve also included the fingerings:

C# Major scale, both ascending and descending for treble clef. Fingerings of the C# Major scale are also included.

Here’s how the C# Major scales look like in bass clef (without key signature). I’ve also included the fingerings:

C# Major scale, both ascending and descending for bass clef. Fingerings of the C# Major scale are also included.

Here’s how the C# Major scales look like in alto clef.

C# Major scale, both ascending and descending for alto clef.

Here’s how the C# Major scales look like in tenor clef (without key signature).

C# Major scale, both ascending and descending for tenor clef.

How to play the C# Major scale on the piano

The fingerings for the right hand part of the C# Major scale are:

C# -2.

D# – 3

E #- 1

F #- 2

G# -3

A #- 4

B #- 1

The fingerings for the left hand part of the C# Major scale are:

C #- 3

D# – 2

E# – 1

F# – 4

G# -3

A# – 2

B# – 1