science

Synthetic scale

Synthetic scale is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Synthetic scale rather than just read about it. In short: In music, a synthetic scale is a scale that derives from a traditional diatonic major scale by altering of one degree by a semitone in either direction. Composer Ferruccio Busoni originally explored these scales in his A New Esthetic of Music and their number and variety were later clarified by J.

Key takeaways

Synthetic scale belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Synthetic scale to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Synthetic scale from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

In music, a synthetic scale is a scale that derives from a traditional diatonic major scale by altering of one degree by a semitone in either direction. Composer Ferruccio Busoni originally explored these scales in his A New Esthetic of Music and their number and variety were later clarified by J. Murray Barbour, who also proposed applying the procedure to scales of more or less than seven degrees, including pentatonic scales. These synthetic pitch collections may serve as basic melodic or harmonic material for a passage of music. However, the hundreds of available scales cause Murray Barbour to propose that, "The whole problem is of greater theoretical interest than of practical worth." Alexander Scriabin's mystic chord, when considered as a scale (the Prometheus scale), is an example of a synthetic chord—in that it is a whole tone scale with one degree altered. However, it was not the generating element to Scriabin's music, nor does his derivation of it from the whole tone scale necessarily indicate knowledge of Busoni's theories. Starting on C, the Prometheus scale is

The semitone steps for this scale are 2, 2, 2, 3, 1, 2. By adding a G to the scale, one would end up with the Lydian♭VII, the fourth degree of the Melodic Minor scale. The pitches of synthetic scales may duplicate pre-existing scales, though their derivation is different and their use is often quite different.

See also Harmonic major scale Jazz minor scale

References

Further reading Yamaguchi, Masaya. 2006. The Complete Thesaurus of Musical Scales, revised edition. New York: Masaya Music Services. ISBN 0-9676353-0-6.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Synthetic scale

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Synthetic scale claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Synthetic scale before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Synthetic scale ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Synthetic scale

In research: Synthetic scale appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Synthetic scale in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Synthetic scale is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Musical scales, Post-tonal music theory, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Synthetic scale outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Synthetic scale in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Synthetic scale means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Synthetic scale out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Synthetic scale in simple terms?

Why does Synthetic scale matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Synthetic scale?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Synthetic scale.