Do all instruments in a beat have to be in the same scale?

  • Thread starter Thread starter koalafresh
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EirikJ said:
It's a good thing to learn basic music theory, but the general rule is to trust your ears first and foremost. If it sounds good, it's good. But learning about chord progressions isn't a bad idea.
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The average person never hears a song and say wow on that break down the synth was out of key this is wack,nobody really cares as long as the track hot,some of my tracks sound better out of key,so I just leave it
 
I'd say the answer to the original question is 'yes' if you're trying to make even vaguely accessible music. It's fair to say that at any given point in a song all instruments should generally be in the same key and mode in order to avoid creating a dissonant sound. Dissonance is an extremely effective tool when used momentarily (it can make a resolution sound a lot sweeter) but for long sections you're really testing the patience of the average listener.

What I am not suggesting is that your beats need to remain in the same key or mode for the entire track. As people have said, some mainstream music like Gaga, Rihanna and Whitney Houston include modulations of key to keep things interesting. Techniques such as pitch axis theory and using unexpected notes to lead into non-diatonic chords can be very effective ways of adding melodic 'surprise' to otherwise conventional tracks.

I think a lot of the most adventurous melodies in pop music happened during the 1980s. Prefab Sprout and Scritti Polliti had some really jazzy/fusion stuff going on at times and they hit it pretty big.
 
Sometimes I make songs in the key of chromatic (insert troll smiley here)...

Seriously though, yeah... you need to generally stick to one or two similar key signatures...
 
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Wow, thank you so much. Well said. EQ'ing is a big challenge and one of the hardest for many to understand.
 
hezekiah74 said:
For me I simply learned the 7 chords in a few comfortable scales. That would be the Maj, Min, Min, Maj, 7th, Min, Dom.

A lot of the theory puts people off, but basically learn the chords for a particular scale and experiment at what points you can jump into another scale. Many scales share chords - that's the transition point.

Reading too much theory will discourage you - experiment !!!
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Not exactly.
Depends on how you use music theory.
I've just been into making beats, and having a well grounded foundation in theory provides a guideline for you to develop certain ideas (if they haven't naturally come to you already).
Like, per say, you have a melody in your head, and your an amateur at innately creating a harmonic structure to it..use some theory. It'll guide you to that framework, that you're imagining.

---------- Post added at 01:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:49 AM ----------

And to answer your question, sir,
Yes, your instruments must belong to the same scale, if not it will sound polytonal which, at this age in time, is considered dissonance.

However, the instruments as a whole, can belong to a mixture of different scales, as long as the entire texture is in it at the same time. (If it's not, it will sound polytonal--dissonant)
And, based off of the modern industry and the music nowadays, music outside of the major/minor system aren't used much because it doesn't really satisfy the ear or attention span.
However, you can always experiment with modal scales..like phygrian (pharrell experiments with that m2 interval between the first and second degree, he also features alot of chromaticism).
Anyways, it's all about you on this one.
If you're an amateur or beginner, I suggest you sticking to a major/minor scale just to get you started. That's if: you're an amateur.
 
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Go out of key sometimes for a little change up....It will be different, but don't make it consistent.......cause then it will just sounds weird...
 
There are definitely situations where you can jump out of the scale maybe to the scales harmonic or minor equivalent. It's all in your ear and just trying things out that is the best way to learn
 
I just do whatever sounds good, i mean, every producer should have an idea of what sounds off note
 
It depends on the genre, most compositions will sound weird and off key and you will notice it if you don't play in the right key with your tracks instruments.
 
koalafresh said:
This question stems from general curiosity.

I've taught myself how to make beats for a year. They've been made by what sounds good to me. I've also taken courses in basic music theory. However, when I'm layering a track out lets say, piano, bass and strings. Should the instruments generally be played in the same scale? Or is this more a subject that depends on taste?

Fresh
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It could technically be played in the same scale....but if you use Inversions/Modes it would give the music a different sound.
 
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Royce Ross said:
I am not a music theory expert by any means, so please excuse any information I may misconstrue...

The short answer to your question is 'yes'. When composing, all the notes you play should be in the same 'key'. All of your chords and melodies should only have the notes from that particular 'key'. But of course, you COULD have notes from outside a certain 'key', if that is to your own personal 'taste'. But on the subject of 'personal taste', each 'key' has it's own 'flavor' to it. For example, the key of 'C Major' exhibits a sound that feels 'happy, innocent, pure'. I hope this insight has answered your question. :)
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(I'm certainly not an expert.. just a guy trying to figure all of this out.)

This is a great point to make.. how each key has its own feeling/vibe.. But it is also critical to differentiate within each key, each note/tone (1-7) also has its own feeling that contrasts the bass notes or lines..

Once you start to learn how these notes feel, it starts to become much easier to hear how certain notes get along with others.. For example, it is fairly simple to hear a 1 and 5 (C and G, for example) within a key, as they share many of the same harmonic frequencies. If you are playing the root note of a key, it can be easy to hear where the 5 would be.

This concept becomes much more complex when writing Arps and melodies, as the notes begin playing all over the scale. Mentioning scales such as pentatonic is a great way to begin learning how to play notes/scales. In trance, the magic begins building in many ways, but the contrast of certain notes against certain chords or bass notes will always be the foundation for how a track feels, or what it is telling you. That, and of course, the actual timbre of the instruments themselves.. how they sound/feel.. Creating instruments and studying the different dynamics of virtual instruments and synthesizers can also be a really helpful and insightful tool for sound design. Not only will it help your productions, but it can also help the understanding of creating virtual sound in a digital environment. I know this is not a great explanation, but I hope this helps someone think about it in a way that has helped me.. a little bit :)

Trance and Peace Out!!
 
You most certainly don't need to employ just one scale...there's groups that will change scales entirely in the chorus or the break

What matters most is if it sounds good to you, most scales are just based in Classical Musical Theory
 
It's generally safer to stick to one key within a beat, but it adds a lot of depth and makes it more interesting if you do deviate sparingly
 
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