Fundamentals
of
Music Theory


Major/minor Interval Group

Major and minor Intervals
Too Big/Too Small
Interval Review


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Too Big/Too Small

A student was trying to construct Major and minor intervals, but made a lot of mistakes! Are the intervals below Major, minor, larger than Major, or smaller than minor?

Larger than Major
Major
minor
Smaller than minor

Larger than Major
Major
minor
Smaller than minor

Larger than Major
Major
minor
Smaller than minor

Larger than Major
Major
minor
Smaller than minor

Larger than Major
Major
minor
Smaller than minor

Larger than Major
Major
minor
Smaller than minor


When an interval in the Major/minor group is a chromatic half step smaller than minor, we call it diminished. When an interval is a chromatic half step larger than Major, we call it Augmented.


Are the following intervals diminished, minor, Major, or Augmented?

Augmented
Major
minor
diminished

Augmented
Major
minor
diminished

Augmented
Major
minor
diminished

Augmented
Major
minor
diminished

Augmented
Major
minor
diminished

Augmented
Major
minor
diminished

Now construct some Augmented and diminished intervals from the Major/minor group:



Changing quality: Adjust the accidental of the upper note to make the specified quality.

diminished:

minor:

Major:

Augmented:





Did you notice how these intervals relate to each other?

half step smaller <----------> half step bigger

diminished

minor

Major

Augmented

You can use this to help you construct and identify intervals. You don't have to think of both a Major and minor scale, but just one or the other, and adjust the accidental as needed to make the correct interval!



Now construct all the types of intervals in the Major/minor group! Once you can do this, you've learned all the basic intervals!


Next Page: Interval Review


© 2006 Scott Perkins and Greg Ristow.