Piano scales · Minor

C♯ minor scale on piano

The C♯ minor scale has seven notes and 4 sharps. Here it is on the keyboard, with the fingering, the chords in the key and a button to hear it.

The notes

C♯, D♯, E, F♯, G♯, A, B, and back to C♯.

Every minor scale follows the same pattern of steps: whole – half – whole – whole – half – whole – whole. A whole step skips one key; a half step goes to the very next key, black or white.

Key signature

C♯ minor has 4 sharps: C♯, D♯, F♯, G♯. Music in C♯ minor shows these at the start of every line.

Its relative major is E major: the same notes, starting from E. See every key on the circle of fifths, and all the key signatures.

Fingering

The rule for every scale: keep your thumb off the black keys, and pass it under after the group of black keys, so your fingers 2–3 or 2–3–4 cover them. Find a fingering that follows that rule, write it on your music, and use the same one every time.

Chords in C♯ minor

Build a chord on each note of the scale, using only the scale's notes, and you get the seven chords of the key:

How to practise it

• Hands separately first, slowly, with a metronome. Evenness matters more than speed: every note the same length and the same weight.
• Watch the thumb: it should pass under smoothly, without the hand jumping.
• When it's even at a slow speed, go up a few clicks. Then hands together, an octave apart.

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