Scales
C Oriental Scale
C · Db · E · F · Gb · A · Bb
C Oriental is a scale built on C with the notes C · Db · E · F · Gb · A · Bb.
C Oriental Scale
C · Db · E · F · Gb · A · Bb
Fingering on the piano
| Hand | Fingering | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right hand | 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 | C · Db · E · F · Gb · A · Bb · C | |
| Left hand | 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 1 | C · Db · E · F · Gb · A · Bb · C |
One octave ascending; 1 is the thumb. A standard fingering, not the only one.
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Scale degrees
C Oriental is made of the notes C · Db · E · F · Gb · A · Bb. Each is a degree counted from the tonic, and the gaps between them are the step pattern H W½ H H W½ H W.
Read on: scale degrees · building any scale
Chords in this key
Stacking thirds on each degree of C Oriental gives the chords of the key; the roman numeral names the degree each is built on.
Related scales
The scales C Oriental shares its notes with: the one it is a rotation of, the relative and parallel keys, the scales inside it and the ones that contain it.
Scales inside it
C Neapolitan Major PentatonicC · E · F · Gb · Bb
Every note of this scale is in C Oriental.
C IwatoC · Db · F · Gb · Bb
Every note of this scale is in C Oriental.
C Prometheus NeapolitanC · Db · E · F# · A · Bb
Every note of this scale is in C Oriental.
Scales that contain it
C ChromaticC · Db · D · Eb · E · F · Gb · G · Ab · A · Bb · B
Contains every note of C Oriental.
Common questions
- How do I play C Oriental?
- On guitar start with the 1st position, played from the lowest string upward; the instrument panel on this page shows its frets and the positions further up the neck. On the piano the right hand ascends 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5, with 1 as the thumb. Every position plays when you press it.
- What chords are in the key of C Oriental?
- Stacking thirds on each degree of C Oriental gives Cmajb5 (I), Dbaug (II+), Gb7no5/E (III), F (IV), Gb (V), Am (vi), Bbm (vii). These are the diatonic chords of the key, the ones a song in this key uses most; the harmony band on this page lists them with the seventh chords built the same way.
- What notes are in C Oriental?
- C Oriental contains the notes C · Db · E · F · Gb · A · Bb, measured from the tonic C as the intervals 1P, 2m, 3M, 4P, 5d, 6M, 7m. Play them in order for the scale: every note on this page sounds when you tap it, and the step pattern under the degrees shows the distance from each note to the next.
- What is the formula of C Oriental?
- From C the steps run H W½ H H W½ H W, where a whole step is two frets or two keys and a half step one. Apply the same pattern from any other note and you get the same scale on that root, which is why every root of this scale has a page here.