By: Megan Kayley Yim
The E flat major scale is a scale typically introduced within the first or second year of learning piano. This could vary, of course, depending on how quickly a student progresses and the type of curriculum the piano instructor chooses to follow.
The E flat major scale, that being said, provides wonderful didactic and pleasurable aspects that any piano player can benefit from. As the name suggests the E flat major scale starts on its tonic (its namesake, first note), the E flat. The E flat is the black key on the left side of the set of 2 black keys. This is your starting point.
Now that we understand where the scale actually starts, we will begin to understand what the E flat major scale consists of. Every scale is built from its key signature--i.e., the set of sharps or flats associated with that particular key, or “scale” name. For E flat, there are 3 flats: B flat, E flat, and A flat. If you are unfamiliar with how the order of flats work; or if you are wondering why E flat is the second flat named after B flat, simply remember this acronym:
Battle
Ends
And
Down
Goes
Charles’
Father
*Fun fact, if you say this acronym backwards, you get the order of sharps!
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As stated previously, the E flat major scale has 3 flats, so you would take the first 3 words: Battle Ends And, which would give you the three flats: B flat, E flat, and A flat. While this order is not necessarily the order of how the flats will be played on the actual E flat major scale, it is important to note because all keyboard scale and technique books will write the key signature in this order.
Another question that a student might have when learning the E flat major scale is how do I know that there are 3 flats? Once again, let’s refer to our acronym trick:
Battle
Ends
And
Down
Goes
Charles’
Father
Within this sentence, you will find that the word for “E flat” (Ends), is the 2nd word of the sentence. The trick then, is to assume that the E flat (of E flat major) is the second last flat of the set of flats within the E flat major scale. That being said, the official last flat would be A flat (And), and the one before it would be B flat (Battle).
Now that we have our key signature, let’s build our scale! Scales consist of 7 different pitches on the piano keyboard. Starting from E flat, you follow the musical alphabet chronologically, while applying the key signatures we already discussed. It would be as follows:
Eflat F G Aflat Bflat C D
After the 7 pitches are identified, the scale will repeat until the desired amount of octaves is reached. An octave is every one set of 7 pitches the pianist decides to play, ending with the starting pitch; in this case, E flat. For example, if you decide to play the E flat major scale for 1 octave, it would look like this:
Eflat F G Aflat Bflat C D Eflat
If you decide to play the E flat major scale for 2 octaves, it would look like this:
Eflat F G Aflat Bflat C D
E flat F G A flat B flat C D E flat
Important: All scales must end on the tonic--i.e., the first note you started on.
Once the scale is built, there are various ways that a student can choose to “read” the E flat major scale. The easiest and perhaps quickest method would be just to write down the letter names alphabetically, as I have done already. However, the musical language is traditionally expressed through notation--a method that dates back to the Middle Ages, first called “neumes”.
If you are familiar with the 5 line staff for musical notation, you want to draw the E starting from the bottom line (this is the first line) of the staff. Then, you simply alternate from line note, space note, line note, etc. It should look something like this:
Next, you want to add your flats. Flats look like lowercase “b”s with the rounded portion looking like half a heart. You can add these to the left of the specific notes that apply to the key signature. As discussed previously, these would be B flat, E flat, and A flat.
Congratulations! You are now all ready to play the scale. Many instructional videos or written articles will jump right into teaching you how to physically play it, but I believe it is better to understand theoretically how the E flat major scale works first, as that sets up a more holistic and a deeper understanding of what the scale entails.
As stated before, E flat major scale begins on E flat. We will first start with the right hand. From here, we will assign a number to each finger on your hand. The thumb will be the “1 finger”, proceeding all the way to your pinky as the “5 finger”.
For the right hand, you want to start the E flat major on your 2 finger (often called the index finger). After, you will tuck your 1 finger under your hand. This tucking method will allow for a continuous flow for your scale, rather than you having to completely lift your hand off the piano during a scale.
The finger numbers for the RH for a 2 octave E flat major scale are as follows:
Eb F G Ab Bb C D Eb F G Ab Bb C D Eb
2 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 1 2 3
Try this going up and downward a few times to get used to this type of fingering. Remember, the key is to keep your hand flat, and tuck your thumbs as you go!
Now, onto the left hand. The finger numbers for the LH for a 2 octave E flat major scale are as follows:
Eb F G Ab Bb C D Eb F G Ab Bb C D Eb
3 2 1 4 3 2 1 3 2 1 4 3 2 1 3
Try this going up and downward a few times to get used to this type of fingering. Remember, the key is to keep your hand flat, and tuck your thumbs as you go!
After a few times going over separate hands, you should be ready to try playing hands together. Remember, try to keep your eyes on the hand that you find most challenging (this is often the left hand for most people--but everyone is different!)
Congratulations! You have now learned the E flat major scale!
Megan Kayley Yim has taught piano for over 10 years and has devoted her life to instilling the art of the piano in others. She has received the highest performance distinction in the Royal Conservatory of Music for Piano Performance with a Licentiate, as well as in Piano Pedagogy.