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Fig. 1 · A# harmonic major · first 12 frets

guitar scale

A♯ harmonic major

A♯1B♯2C𝄪3D♯4E♯5F♯♭6G𝄪7

Major with a flattened sixth: the mirror of harmonic minor, and the reason a major key can borrow a minor subdominant.

The same sounds spelled from the other side are B♭ harmonic major.

on ukuleleon piano

Written out

Fig. 2 · A# harmonic major, ascending

Every accidental is written in, rather than left to a key signature, so the letters can be read one at a time.

The step pattern

A♯WB♯WC𝄪HD♯WE♯HF♯W+HG𝄪HA♯

What is true of it

A♯ harmonic major is A♯, B♯, C𝄪, D♯, E♯, F♯ and G𝄪, and back to A♯.

Its steps are W – W – H – W – H – W+H – H, where W is a whole step and H a half.

Written correctly it needs 9 alterations, C𝄪 and G𝄪 among them. That is what the letters force, and it is also why nobody writes music in this key: the same notes spelled from the other side are easier to read.

On the same tonic, A♯ major differs from it by exactly one note.

Across the first twelve frets of the guitar its notes fall in 44 places, which is what makes a scale a shape rather than a list.

Chords made only of these notes

D♯mminorD♯dimdiminishedF♯dimdiminishedF♯augaugmentedA♯majorA♯augaugmentedA♯maj7major seventh

Found by testing every chord in the catalogue against these 7 sounds, not chosen.

Other scales on A♯

A♯ majormajorA♯ natural minorminorA♯ harmonic minorminorA♯ melodic minorminor

C harm majC♯ harm majD♭ harm majD harm majD♯ harm majE♭ harm majE harm majF harm majall 374