NB: I have not seen this written about anywhere before, so you are among the first to read this information, for what that’s worth.
The Major scale has been the standard against which all other scales are compared for a long time. The reason has, I’m sure, been given but none has seemed satisfactory to me, which led me to do a great deal of thought on the subject, usually while out walking in the woods, which is a very productive time for me intellectually, as somehow the automatic motion of the body and the role the brain has in directing that, leaves a substantial portion to create, ruminate and work on trains of thought. Maybe that’s just me, but I recommend it for anyone trying to work on complex concepts.
Anyhoo, the Major scale is a stable one, but it isn’t the only one. The Harmonic minor is too and so are a few others, so that can’t be the sole reason. The diatonic structure inherent in the scale doesn’t seem to me to be reason enough for its preference.
So, what could be the reason, what is it that the Major scale accomplishes that none other in the scale universe seems to satisfy? Here, I want to take a moment to urge the reader to become familiar with the mathematical approach to music theory that I have developed and put forward in my book, The Modal Method of Music (M3). My previous post explains in a simple manner how the circle of fifths is actually a conceptual way of understanding the mathematical process that underlies the alteration of scales when a modulation occurs in music. Here is the link to the previous post:
The truth is, that the Major scale is the benchmark by which all other scales are compared because the formula of the scale allows for an alteration that leads to another Major scale. No other scale has this unique quality. Every time a note is altered in any of the other 65 scales, another, different scale is the result. Lydian (+1) = Locrian, mode VII from a Major scale up a fifth, whilst Locrian (-1) leads to a Major scale back a fifth.
Not only is the Major scale the only one to stay the same after an alteration to one of its modes, it occurs twice. In C Major, raising the root of F Lydian creates F# Locrian, mode VII from G Major, and flattening the root of B Locrian creates Bb Lydian, mode IV of F Major. This allows for the change in keys whilst at the same time staying within the structural boundaries of the same scale, an unique property of the Major scale only, hence its dominance over the rest of the scales. It is like having a canvas, being the Major scale, and all of the other scales are used to draw, paint and shade whatever the desired picture is. That is why, in my view, music that uses the Major scale only, excluding all others, is comparable to a blank canvas, dull, repetitive and bland.
This observation becomes apparent when using the (+1) and (-1) method as opposed to the circle of fifths and the benefits of doing so and the new insights it brings are only now being slowly realised. Thanks for reading. By the way, look closely at the diagram, notice the spirals. It is based upon the harmonic series.
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