Lesson 7

Scales & octaves

Play a scale on the pads, move it higher or lower, and change the key and scale your melodies use.

You’ll need:

A Move that is switched on
A Set with at least one melodic sound (not a drum kit)

The idea

Music uses just seven letter names for notes: C D E F G A B. After B the names start again at C, but the new C sounds higher. That jump from one C to the next C is called an octave. Two notes an octave apart sound like the same note, one high and one low.

A scale is a set of notes that sound good together. Every scale starts on a home note called the root, and that home note is also called the key of the music. The major scale sounds bright and happy. A minor scale sounds darker or sadder. C major is simply the major scale that starts on C, and it uses only the white keys of a piano.

When you first get Move, the pads show only the notes of C major. This is called In-Key mode. Any pad you hit belongs to the scale, so there are no “wrong” notes. That makes it a great way to make up melodies before you know any music theory.

With the usual layout, each row of 8 pads holds one octave of the scale, and the root note pads light up in the track’s colour. The other rows play the same notes, just higher or lower.

CDEFGABCCDEFGABCCDEFGABCCDEFGABC

C major on Move's pads: each row is one octave, from C on the left up to the next C on the right. The C pads (the root) glow in the track's colour.

Press the second track button from the top, then tap a few pads. In a new Set this track holds a bass: a melodic sound, where pads play higher notes as you go to the right. If each pad plays a different drum hit instead, it’s a drum kit, so try another track button.
Didn’t work?
In a demo Set, or after swapping sounds, the tracks may hold anything. If none of the four tracks is melodic, Lesson 8 shows you how to swap in a new sound. Come back here afterwards.
You should see: The display shows the sound loaded on that track.
Play one row of pads from left to right, one pad at a time. Any row works.
Didn’t work?
If the notes don’t climb step by step, the layout may have been changed earlier. You’ll see how to set it below.
You should hear: Eight notes climbing up: a major scale, from C up to the next C.
Press Minus (−), then play the row again.
You should hear: The same row now plays the scale lower.
Press Plus (+) twice, and play the row once more. You have moved the whole keyboard up by one octave from where you started.
Didn’t work?
Plus and Minus shift the octave of melodic sounds. If you hear no change, check that the track you picked plays notes, not drums.
You should hear: The row plays higher than where you started.
Hold Shift, then press Step 9.
Didn’t work?
Nothing happened? Press your track button first so you are in Note Mode, then try again. Hold Shift down the whole time you press Step 9.
You should see: The Keys & Scales menu opens on the display.
Turn the wheel until the key entry is highlighted (the key is C unless someone changed it), then press the wheel.
You should see: The key entry is highlighted and ready to change.
Turn the wheel to pick a different key, such as A, and press the wheel to confirm. Play a row of pads to hear the new home note.
Didn’t work?
If turning the wheel jumps to another menu entry instead of changing the key, the key entry isn’t open yet. Turn back to it, press the wheel once, and then turn.
You should hear: The pads now play a scale that starts on your new key.
Turn the wheel to the entry for the pad mode (it shows In-Key or Chromatic) and press the wheel to switch it to Chromatic. Play a few pads: now every note is there, including the ones that don’t fit your scale.
Didn’t work?
If a short list opens instead of the mode switching, turn the wheel to Chromatic and press it again. In Chromatic mode the pads no longer go in octave rows. Each pad to the right is one small step higher, and each row up is five of those steps higher, a bit like the strings of a guitar.
You should see: The mode changes to Chromatic, and some pads go dark: those are the notes outside your scale.
Press the wheel on the same entry to switch back to In-Key (or pick In-Key from the list, if one opened). The rest of the course uses In-Key.
You should see: The mode is In-Key again, and every lit pad belongs to your scale.
Press Back to leave the menu.
You should see: The menu closes and you're back to the sound's display.

Try it yourself

Open Keys & Scales again, find the scale entry, and try a few other scales from the list (look for a minor one). Play slowly up and down one row, then jump between rows for high and low notes.
Make up a short tune that starts and ends on a root pad (the ones in the track’s colour). Notice how ending there sounds “finished”.
Switch between the major and minor scales in the same key while playing the same pads. Which mood do you like more?

Good to know

Picked a new key after recording a tune? Your recorded notes stay exactly as they were. The new key only affects what you play next.
Each Set remembers its own key and scale, so a sad song and a happy song can live side by side.
The menu also has a 4ths option that lays out the notes differently. Here, each row starts a little higher than the one below it, instead of a full octave. The octave rows are easier to start with.