Major Blues Scale
The Major Blues Scale has a Major quality due to its Major Third E. The Major Blues Scale, like Major Blues, is based on the Major Pentatonic Scale but includes an additional blue note E♭ between the Second and Third degrees. These blue notes play a huge part in why blues music is so recognizable. The Major Blues Scale is classified as a hexatonic scale as it has six notes, C, D, E♭, E, G, A.
Below you will find the Major Blues Scale notes, notation, patterns, degrees, intervals and more. You can also opt to see the Major Blues Scale on your preferred instrument.
Notes Ascending
C, D, E♭, E, G, A, C
Notes Descending
C, A, G, E, E♭, D, C
Notation Ascending
Notation Descending
Pattern Ascending
T, S, S, TS, T, TS
S = Semitone, T = Tone (2 Semitones)
Pattern Descending
TS, T, TS, S, S, T
S = Semitone, T = Tone (2 Semitones)
Degrees Ascending
| Note | Number | Name |
|---|---|---|
| C | 1 | Tonic |
| D | 2 | Supertonic |
| E♭ | ♭3 | Mediant |
| E | 3 | Mediant |
| G | 5 | Dominant |
| A | 6 | Submediant |
| C | 8 | Tonic (Octave) |
Degrees Descending
| Note | Number | Name |
|---|---|---|
| C | 8 | Tonic (Octave) |
| A | 6 | Submediant |
| G | 5 | Dominant |
| E | 3 | Mediant |
| E♭ | ♭3 | Mediant |
| D | 2 | Supertonic |
| C | 1 | Tonic |
Intervals Ascending
| Notes | Semitones | Interval |
|---|---|---|
| C > C | 0 | Perfect Unison (P1) |
| C > D | 2 | Major 2nd (M2) |
| C > E♭ | 3 | minor 3rd (m3) |
| C > E | 4 | Major 3rd (M3) |
| C > G | 7 | Perfect 5th (P5) |
| C > A | 9 | Major 6th (M6) |
| C > C | 12 | Perfect Octave (P8) |
Intervals Descending
| Notes | Semitones | Interval |
|---|---|---|
| C > C | 0 | Perfect Unison (P1) |
| C > A | 3 | minor 3rd (m3) |
| C > G | 5 | Perfect 4th (P4) |
| C > E | 8 | minor 6th (m6) |
| C > E♭ | 9 | Major 6th (M6) |
| C > D | 10 | minor 7th (m7) |
| C > C | 12 | Perfect Octave (P8) |
Scales related to C Major Blues Scale
Enharmonic Equivalent Scale
Scale with the same root and notes as the C Major Blues Scale but different spelling.
B♯ Major Blues Scale
Relative Minor Scale
Minor scale with the same notes as C Major Blues Scale but in a different order.
A Minor Blues Scale
Chords related to C Major Blues Scale
Related Triads
The related chords cannot be built using the notes of C Major Blues Scale alone so they have been substituted with the chords of the C Major Scale. The chords are in degree order and shown in Roman numerals (lowercase = minor/diminished, uppercase = Major/Augmented).
I Chord - C Major
ii Chord - D Minor
iii Chord - E Minor
IV Chord - F Major
V Chord - G Major
vi Chord - A Minor
viio Chord - B Diminished
Learn to Play Major Blues Scale
If you want to learn what scales and modes are and much more, check out our free Fundamentals of Music Theory course. If you already know some of the basics, you can jump straight into the scales lesson.
