E♭ Major Scale

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E♭ Major Scale it starts and ends with E flat. The relative minor of E♭ Major is C minor. Both of these keys have B♭, E♭ and A♭.

E♭ Major Key Signature

Here’s the key signature for E♭ Major – B♭, E♭ and A♭.

key signature of E flat Major in treble clef. This is also the key signature of C minor, a relative minor of E flat major.
key signature of E flat Major in bass clef. This is also the key signature of C minor, a relative minor of E flat major.
key signature of E flat Major in alto clef. This is also the key signature of C minor, a relative minor of E flat major.
key signature of E flat Major in tenor clef. This is also the key signature of C minor, a relative minor of E flat major.

Notes in the Scale of E flat 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 E flat Major: E♭, F, G, A♭, B♭, C, D, E♭

Descending scale of E flat Major: E♭, D. C, B♭, A♭, G, F, E♭

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 E♭ Major scale:

1st degree: E♭

2nd degree: F

3rd degree: G

4th degree: A♭

5th degree: B♭

6th degree: C

7th degree: D

Technical Names of Notes in E♭ Major

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

tonic – E♭

supertonic – F

mediant – G

subdominant – A♭

dominant – B♭

submediant – C

leading note – D

Semitones and Tones

In all major scales, they follow this:

Pairs of notesTone or semitone apart?
1st -> 2ndtone
2nd -> 3rdtone
3rd -> 4thsemitone
4th -> 5thtone
5th -> 6thtone
6th -> 7thtone
7th -> 8thsemitone

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 E♭ 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 F# to G (3rd to 4th note)
  • From C# to D (7th to 8th note)

E♭ Major Scale on different clefs.

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

E flat Major ascending and descending scales in treble clef with fingerings included.

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

E flat Major ascending and descending scales in bass clef with fingerings included.

Here’s how the E♭ Major scales look like in alto clef.

E flat Major ascending and descending scales in alto clef.

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

E flat Major ascending and descending scales in tenor clef.

How to play the E♭ Major scale on the piano

The fingerings for the right hand part of the E♭ Major scale are:

E♭ -2/3 (use the 2nd finger only for the first E♭ of the ascending scale, the rest use 3)

F- 1

G- 2

A♭ -3

B♭ – 4

C- 1

D – 2

The fingerings for the left hand part of the E♭ Major scale are:

E♭ -3

F- 2

G- 1

A♭ -4

B♭ – 3

C- 2

D – 1

Categories: keys, music theory