About the A Oriental (Chinese) scale
A Oriental (Chinese) is used for Middle Eastern flavored and cinematic melodies. Think of it as an exotic dominant scale with a flat second and flat fifth.
Its notes are A, B♭, C♯, D, E♭, F♯, and G. The formula is H 1½ H H 1½ H W. It is the fifth mode of D Double Harmonic Major.
Four of the notes in A Oriental (Chinese) are black keys, B♭, C♯, E♭, and F♯.
Notes and intervals
| 1 | AA | Root |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | BbB♭ | Minor 2nd |
| 3 | C#C♯ | Major 3rd |
| 4 | DD | Perfect 4th |
| 5 | EbE♭ | Diminished 5th |
| 6 | F#F♯ | Major 6th |
| 7 | GG | Minor 7th |
| Steps | H 1½ H H 1½ H W |
|---|---|
| Semitones | 1-3-1-1-3-1-2 |
| Degrees | 1 ♭2 3 4 ♭5 6 ♭7 |
Fingering
Suggested fingering, follows standard fingering rules
| Hand | A | B flat | C sharp | D | E flat | F sharp | G | A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Right hand | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Left hand | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Shapes
Chromatic
Circle of Fifths
Related scales
Oriental (Chinese) in other keys
C Oriental (Chinese) scaleD flat Oriental (Chinese) scaleD Oriental (Chinese) scaleE flat Oriental (Chinese) scaleE Oriental (Chinese) scaleF Oriental (Chinese) scaleG flat Oriental (Chinese) scaleG Oriental (Chinese) scaleA flat Oriental (Chinese) scaleB flat Oriental (Chinese) scaleB Oriental (Chinese) scale
Modes
The same notes, starting on a different note.
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