How can you tell if the scale is major?

How can you tell if the scale is major?

• A. ^1 to ^2 must be a half step and ^2 to ^3 must be a whole step
• B. ^6 to ^7 must be a whole step apart and ^7 to ^8 must be a half step
• C. The scale uses all half steps
• D. The scale starts on the tonic and ends on the dominant

Answer: (B)

The defining feature of a major scale is its specific pattern of whole and half steps between consecutive notes: whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half. Seeing a whole-step rise from the sixth to the seventh note and a half-step rise from the seventh to the octave exactly matches that pattern, confirming the scale is major. This tail end—6 to 7 as a whole, then 7 to 8 as a half—is a reliable telltale sign. If a scale used all half steps, that would be a chromatic scale, not major. And a scale that ends on the dominant rather than the octave of the tonic isn’t portraying a standard major scale.

The defining feature of a major scale is its specific pattern of whole and half steps between consecutive notes: whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half. Seeing a whole-step rise from the sixth to the seventh note and a half-step rise from the seventh to the octave exactly matches that pattern, confirming the scale is major. This tail end—6 to 7 as a whole, then 7 to 8 as a half—is a reliable telltale sign.

If a scale used all half steps, that would be a chromatic scale, not major. And a scale that ends on the dominant rather than the octave of the tonic isn’t portraying a standard major scale.