F major scale — fingering and practice
The F major scale has 1 flat (B♭). Going up one octave, its notes are F, G, A, B♭, C, D, E and F. The right hand plays it with fingers 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4 going up.
- 1 flat (B♭)
About this exercise
Its relative minor is the D minor scale, which has the same key signature.
Right-hand fingering going up: 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4. Left hand going up: 5-4-3-2-1-3-2-1. Coming down, the fingers reverse. The sheet music view shows a finger on every note for any number of octaves.
Start with one hand in Wait mode, so the music waits for each note while you watch the fingers and the thumb passing under. Then play hands together, raise the speed a little at a time, and try contrary motion, octaves, broken octaves and thirds.
Fingering, one octave going up
| Note | F | G | A | B♭ | C | D | E | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Right hand | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Left hand | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Scale degrees
Each note of the scale has a number (a Roman numeral) and a name for its role in the key.
| Degree | Note | Name |
|---|---|---|
| I | F | Tonic |
| II | G | Supertonic |
| III | A | Mediant |
| IV | B♭ | Subdominant |
| V | C | Dominant |
| VI | D | Submediant |
| VII | E | Leading note |
Chords in the key of F major
Build a three-note chord on each note of the scale, using only notes of the scale, and you get the seven chords of the key. Upper-case numerals are major chords, lower-case are minor, and ° marks a diminished chord.
The I, IV and V chords (F, B♭ and C) are the primary chords of F major: between them they harmonise most simple melodies in this key.
Two-octave fingering
Right hand going up two octaves: 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4. The thumb passes under onto C, F and C.
Left hand going up two octaves: 5-4-3-2-1-3-2-1-4-3-2-1-3-2-1, crossing finger 3 over the thumb onto D, finger 4 over the thumb onto G and finger 3 over the thumb onto D.
Fingering, two octaves going up
| Note | F | G | A | B♭ | C | D | E | F | G | A | B♭ | C | D | E | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Right hand | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Left hand | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Contrary motion and hands together
In contrary motion both hands start on F and move apart, the right hand going up and the left hand going down.
In this key the hands use different fingers at the same moment (right hand 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4, left hand 1-2-3-1-2-3-4-5), so learn the fingering of each hand alone before you put them together.
For hands together in the same direction, the left hand plays an octave lower; start slowly and listen for both hands landing at exactly the same time.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting the key signature: every B in this scale is flat (B♭).
- Passing the thumb late on C and F: the thumb should already be moving under the hand while finger 4 plays, without the elbow jerking out.
- Accenting the thumb notes, so the scale sounds in lumps instead of one even line. Record yourself or play along with the falling notes to hear it.
Questions and answers
What notes are in the F major scale?
The F major scale has 1 flat (B♭). Its notes are F, G, A, B♭, C, D, E and F.
What is the fingering for the F major scale?
Going up one octave, the right hand plays 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4 and the left hand plays 5-4-3-2-1-3-2-1. Coming down, reverse the fingers.
What chords are in the key of F major?
The seven chords of F major are F (I), Gm (ii), Am (iii), B♭ (IV), C (V), Dm (vi) and E° (vii°).