Intervals above the tonic

Tone or semitone?

You met tones and semitones in the scales lessons. Grade 2 asks the same intervals as Grade 1, in its new major and minor keys too. To tell them apart between two notes, picture a piano:

• the very next key, with nothing between: a semitone;
• one key in between: a tone.

Remember the key signature: in G major an F is really F sharp, and F sharp to G is a semitone.

Numbering an interval

An interval is the distance between two notes. Its number comes from counting the letter names, counting both notes.

From C up to G: C, D, E, F, G. That is five letter names, so the interval is a 5th. Two notes with the same letter, eight apart, make an octave.

Melodic and harmonic

Two notes played one after the other make a melodic interval; played together they make a harmonic interval. The number is counted the same way.

In a minor key, remember the raised 7th: in A minor the 7th above the key note is G sharp.

Tip: on the stave, a line to the next line is a 3rd; a line to the next space is a 2nd. Count the steps if you are unsure: every line and every space is one letter.