Pentatonic scale

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
"Pentatonics" redirects here. For the a cappella group and their 2015 album, see Pentatonix and Pentatonix (album).
"Pentatone" redirects here. For the classical music label, see Pentatone (record label).
The first two phrases of the melody from Stephen Foster's "Oh! Susanna" are based on the major pentatonic scale[1]

A pentatonic scale is a musical scale with five notes per octave, in contrast to the heptatonic scale, which has seven notes per octave (such as the major scale and minor scale).

Pentatonic scales were developed independently by many ancient civilizations

semitones
(hemitonic) and those without (anhemitonic).

Types

Hemitonic and anhemitonic

Main article: Anhemitonic scale
Minyō scale on D,[4] equivalent to yo scale on D,[5] with brackets on fourths
Miyako-bushi scale on D, equivalent to in scale on D, with brackets on fourths[6]

Musicology commonly classifies pentatonic scales as either hemitonic or anhemitonic. Hemitonic scales contain one or more semitones and anhemitonic scales do not contain semitones. (For example, in Japanese music the anhemitonic yo scale is contrasted with the hemitonic in scale.) Hemitonic pentatonic scales are also called "ditonic scales", because the largest interval in them is the ditone (e.g., in the scale C–E–F–G–B–C, the interval found between C–E and G–B).[7] (This should not be confused with the identical term also used by musicologists to describe a scale including only two notes.)

Major pentatonic scale

Anhemitonic pentatonic scales can be constructed in many ways. The major pentatonic scale may be thought of as a gapped or incomplete major scale, using scale tones 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 of the major scale.[1] One construction takes five consecutive pitches from the circle of fifths;[8] starting on C, these are C, G, D, A, and E. Rearranging the pitches to fit into one octave creates the major pentatonic scale: C, D, E, G, A.

{ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \time 5/4 c d e g a c } }

Another construction works backward: It omits two pitches from a

scale degrees
, F and B. The remaining notes then make up the major pentatonic scale: C, D, E, G, and A.

Omitting the third and seventh degrees of the C major scale obtains the notes for another transpositionally equivalent anhemitonic pentatonic scale: F, G, A, C, D. Omitting the first and fourth degrees of the C major scale gives a third anhemitonic pentatonic scale: G, A, B, D, E.

The black keys on a piano keyboard comprise a G-flat (or equivalently, F-sharp) major pentatonic scale: G-flat, A-flat, B-flat, D-flat, and E-flat, which is exploited in

Chopin's black key étude
.

{ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c'' { \time 5/4 ges aes bes des ees ges } }

Minor pentatonic scale

Although various hemitonic pentatonic scales might be called minor, the term is most commonly applied to the relative minor pentatonic derived from the major pentatonic, using scale tones 1, ♭3, 4, 5, and ♭7 of the

natural minor scale.[1] (It may also be considered a gapped blues scale.)[9]
The C minor pentatonic scale, the relative minor of the E-flat pentatonic scale, is C, E-flat, F, G, B-flat. The A minor pentatonic, the relative minor of C pentatonic, comprises the same tones as the C major pentatonic, starting on A, giving A, C, D, E, G. This minor pentatonic contains all three tones of an A minor triad.

{ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c'' { \time 5/4 a4 c d e g | a } }

The standard tuning of a guitar uses the notes of an E minor pentatonic scale: E–A–D–G–B–E, contributing to its frequency in popular music.[10]

Japanese scale

Main article: Japanese mode

Japanese mode is based on Phrygian mode, but use scale tones 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 instead of scale tones 1, 3, 4, 5, and 7.

{ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \time 5/4 e f a b c | e } }

Modes of the pentatonic scale

See also: Mode (music)

The pentatonic scale (containing notes C, D, E, G and A) has five modes, which are derived by treating a different note as the tonic:

Tonic Name(s) Chinese pentatonic scale Indian pentatonic scale On C White key transpositions Black key transposition
C major pentatonic F major pentatonic G major pentatonic F♯/G♭ major pentatonic
1 (C) Major pentatonic 宮 (gōng) mode Hindustani – Bhoopali
Carnatic – Mohanam
Tamil - Mullaittīmpāṇi 		C–D–E–G–A–C C–D–E–G–A–C F–G–A–C–D–F G–A–B–D–E–G G♭–A♭–B♭–D♭–E♭–G♭
2 (D) Suspended, Egyptian 商 (shāng) mode Hindustani – Megh
Carnatic – Madhyamavati
Tamil - Centurutti 		C–D–F–G–B♭–C D–E–G–A–C–D G–A–C–D–F–G A–B–D–E–G–A A♭–B♭–D♭–E♭–G♭–A♭
3 (E) Blues minor, Man Gong (Guqin tunings) 角 (jué) mode Hindustani – Malkauns
Carnatic – Hindolam
Tamil - Intaḷam 		C–E♭–F–A♭–B♭–C E–G–A–C–D–E A–C–D–F–G–A B–D–E–G–A–B B♭–D♭–E♭–G♭–A♭–B♭
5 (G) Blues major,
ritsusen [ja], yo scale
 徵 (zhǐ) mode Hindustani – Durga
Carnatic – Shuddha Saveri
Tamil - Koṉṟai 		C–D–F–G–A–C G–A–C–D–E–G C–D–F–G–A–C D–E–G–A–B–D D♭–E♭–G♭–A♭–B♭–D♭
6 (A) Minor pentatonic 羽 (yǔ) mode Hindustani –
Shuddha Dhanyasi

Tamil - āmpal 		C–E♭–F–G–B♭–C A–C–D–E–G–A D–F–G–A–C–D E–G–A–B–D–E E♭–G♭–A♭–B♭–D♭–E♭

Ricker assigned the major pentatonic scale mode I while Gilchrist assigned it mode III.[11]

Relationship to diatonic modes

Each mode of the pentatonic scale (containing notes C, D, E, G and A) can be thought of as the five scale degrees shared by three different diatonic modes with the two remaining scale degrees removed:

Venn-like diagram showing the correspondence between each pentatonic scale and three different diatonic modes.
Each pentatonic scale can be thought of as the five notes shared by three different diatonic modes.
Pentatonic
scale 		Tonic
note 		Based on modes (Diatonic scale) Base scale
degrees 		Modifications Interval sequence
Major C I–II–III–V–VI Omit 4 7 W–W–3/2–W–3/2
Blues major G I–II–IV–V–VI Omit 3 7 W–3/2–W–W–3/2
Suspended D I–II–IV–V–VII Omit 3 6 W–3/2–W–3/2–W
Minor A I–III–IV–V–VII Omit 2 6 3/2–W–W–3/2–W
Blues minor E I–III–IV–VI–VII Omit 2 5 3/2–W–3/2–W–W

Intervals from tonic

Further information: Interval (music)

Each mode of the pentatonic scale (containing notes C, D, E, G and A) features different intervals of notes from the tonic according to the table below. Note the omission of the semitones above (m2) and below (M7) the tonic as well as the tritone (TT).

Chromatic circle diagrams comparing the pentatonic scale intervals to the diatonic scale
The intervals used in the pentatonic scale compared to the diatonic scale.
Pentatonic
scale 		Tonic
note 		Intervals with respect to the tonic
unison second
note 		third
note 		fourth
note 		fifth
note 		octave
Major C P1 M2 M3 P5 M6 P8
Blues major G P4
Suspended D m7
Minor A m3
Blues minor E m6

Tuning

Pythagorean tuning

Further information: Pythagorean tuning

Ben Johnston gives the following Pythagorean tuning for the minor pentatonic scale:[12]

A minor pentatonic scale in Pythagorean tuning
Problems playing this file? See media help.
Note Solfege A C D E G A
Ratio 1⁄1
32⁄27
 4⁄3 3⁄2
16⁄9
 2⁄1
Natural 54 64 72 81 96 108
Audio 1
 3
 4
 5
 7
 8
Step Name   m3 T T m3 T  
Ratio 32⁄27 9⁄8 9⁄8 32⁄27 9⁄8

Naturals in that table are not the alphabetic series A to G without sharps and flats: Naturals are reciprocals of terms in the Harmonic series (mathematics), which are in practice multiples of a fundamental frequency. This may be derived by proceeding with the principle that historically gives the Pythagorean diatonic and chromatic scales, stacking perfect fifths with 3:2 frequency proportions (C–G–D–A–E). Considering the anhemitonic scale as a subset of a just diatonic scale, it is tuned thus: 20:24:27:30:36 (A–C–D–E–G = 5⁄6–1⁄1–9⁄8–5⁄4–3⁄2).

Just intonation

Further information: Just intonation
Just pentatonic tuning of Lou Harrison's "American gamelan", Old Granddad.[13] This gives the proportions 24:27:30:36:40.
Modes Ratios (just)
Major 24:27:30:36:40
Blues major 24:27:32:36:40
Suspended 24:27:32:36:42
Minor 30:36:40:45:54
Blues minor 15:18:20:24:27

(A minor seventh can be 7:4, 16:9, or 9:5; a major sixth can be 27:16 or 5:3. Both were chosen to minimize ratio parts.)

Other

Assigning precise frequency proportions to the pentatonic scales of most cultures is problematic as tuning may be variable.

Slendro approximated in Western notation.[14]

For example, the slendro anhemitonic scale and its modes of Java and Bali are said to approach, very roughly, an equally-tempered five-note scale,[15] but their tunings vary dramatically from gamelan to gamelan.[16]

Composer

12⁄7
–2⁄1 = 42:48:56:63:72)

Use of pentatonic scales

Pentatonic scales occur in many musical traditions:

In classical music

Examples of its use include:

Beethoven, Quartet in F major, Op. 135, finale:

Beethoven Quartet Op 135, finale bars 250-7
Beethoven Quartet Op 135, finale bars 250-7

Chopin's Etude in G-flat major, Op. 10, No. 5, the "Black Key" etude,[1] in the major pentatonic.

Chopin Etude Op. 10 No. 5
Chopin Etude Op. 10 No. 5

Western Impressionistic composers such as French composer Claude Debussy[48] and Maurice Ravel used the pentatonic scale extensively in their works.

Pentatonic scale in Debussy's Voiles, Preludes, Book I, no. 2, mm. 43–45.[49]
Pentatonic scale in Ravel's Ma mère l'Oye III. "Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes", mm. 9–13.[1]

whole-tone scales
in the former to evoke similar ideas.

Indian ragas

Main article: Raga

Indian classical music has hundreds of ragas, of which many are pentatonic. Examples include Raag Abhogi Kanada (C, D, E-flat, F, A),[50] Raag Bhupali (C, D, E, G, A),[51] Raag Bairagi (C, D-flat, F, G, B-flat),[52] Raag Chandrakauns (C, E-flat, F, A-flat, B),[53] Raag Dhani (C, E-flat, F, G, B-flat),[50] Raag Durga (C, D, F, G, A),[54] Raag Gunakari (C, D-flat, F, G, A-flat),[55] Raag Hamsadhwani (C, D, E, G, B),[56] Raag Hindol (C, E, F#, A, B),[57] Raag Kalavati (C, E, G, A, B-flat),[50] Raag Katyayani (C, D, E-flat, G, A-flat),[58] Raag Malkauns (C, E-flat, F, A-flat, B-flat),[59] Raag Megh (C, D, F, G, B-flat),[50] Raag Shivaranjani (C, D, E-flat, G, A),[60] Raag Shuddha Sarang (C, D, F#, G, B),[61] Raag Tilang (C, E, F, G, B),[62] Raag Vibhas (C, D-flat, E, G, A-flat),[63] Raag Vrindavani Sarang (C, D, F, G, B), and others.[64]

(For Tamil Music System, See here - Ancient Tamil music#Evolution of panns )

Further pentatonic musical traditions

D Yo scale

The major pentatonic scale is the basic scale of the

shomyo Buddhist chants and gagaku imperial court music is an anhemitonic pentatonic scale[66]
shown below, which is the fourth mode of the major pentatonic scale.

Javanese

Temperated pentatoncs

In Javanese gamelan music, the slendro scale has five tones, of which four are emphasized in classical music. Another scale, pelog, has seven tones, and is generally played using one of three five-tone subsets known as pathet, in which certain notes are avoided while others are emphasized.[67]

Somali

modal system that is pentatonic, with characteristically long intervals between some notes. As with many other aspects of Somali culture and tradition, tastes in music and lyrics are strongly linked with those in nearby Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Sudan.[68][69]

Scottish

In

Blackfoot music most often uses anhemitonic tetratonic or pentatonic scales.[72]

Andean

Pacha Siku

In

percussion), pentatonic melody is often led with parallel fifths and fourths, so formally this music is hexatonic.[citation needed
]

Jazz

Rock guitar solo almost all over B minor pentatonic

diatonic to the same key, often better than the parent scale. For example, the blues scale is predominantly derived from the minor pentatonic scale, a very popular scale for improvisation in the realms of blues and rock alike.[73] For instance, over a C major triad (C, E, G) in the key of C major, the note F can be perceived as dissonant as it is a half step above the major third (E) of the chord. It is for this reason commonly avoided. Using the major pentatonic scale is an easy way out of this problem. The scale tones 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 (from the major pentatonic) are either major triad tones (1, 3, 5) or common consonant extensions (2, 6) of major triads. For the corresponding relative minor pentatonic, scale tones 1, ♭3, 4, 5, ♭7 work the same way, either as minor triad tones (1, ♭3, 5) or as common extensions (4, ♭7), as they all avoid being a half step from a chord tone.[citation needed
]

Other

U.S. military cadences, or jodies, which keep soldiers in step while marching or running, also typically use pentatonic scales.[74]

Hymns and other religious music sometimes use the pentatonic scale; for example, the melody of the hymn "Amazing Grace",[75] one of the most famous pieces in religious music.[citation needed
]

The common pentatonic major and minor scales (C-D-E-G-A and C-E♭-F-G-B♭, respectively) are useful in modal composing, as both scales allow a melody to be modally ambiguous between their respective major (Ionian, Lydian, Mixolydian) and minor (Aeolian, Phrygian, Dorian) modes (Locrian excluded). With either modal or non-modal writing, however, the harmonization of a pentatonic melody does not necessarily have to be derived from only the pentatonic pitches.[citation needed]

Most

Tuareg songs are pentatonic, as is most other music from the Sahel and Sudan
regions.

Role in education

The pentatonic scale plays a significant role in music education, particularly in Orff-based, Kodály-based, and Waldorf methodologies at the primary or elementary level.

The Orff system places a heavy emphasis on developing creativity through

metallophones, use wooden bars, metal bars or bells, which can be removed by the teacher, leaving only those corresponding to the pentatonic scale, which Carl Orff himself believed to be children's native tonality.[76]

Children begin improvising using only these bars, and over time, more bars are added at the teacher's discretion until the complete diatonic scale is being used. Orff believed that the use of the pentatonic scale at such a young age was appropriate to the development of each child, since the nature of the scale meant that it was impossible for the child to make any real harmonic mistakes.[77]

In Waldorf education, pentatonic music is considered to be appropriate for young children due to its simplicity and unselfconscious openness of expression. Pentatonic music centered on intervals of the fifth is often sung and played in early childhood; progressively smaller intervals are emphasized within primarily pentatonic as children progress through the early school years. At around nine years of age the music begins to center on first folk music using a six-tone scale, and then the modern diatonic scales, with the goal of reflecting the children's developmental progress in their musical experience. Pentatonic instruments used include lyres, pentatonic flutes, and tone bars; special instruments have been designed and built for the Waldorf curriculum.[78]

See also

References

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    . Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan have significant similarities emanating not only from culture, religion, traditions, history and aspirations ... They appreciate similar foods and spices, beverages and sweets, fabrics and tapestry, lyrics and music, and jewelry and fragrances.
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Further reading

External links

Look up pentatonic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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