Can any song be played in any scale?

[mobi]

Is it possible to play any song (e.g. Jingle Bells) in any scale (e.g. C major and D major)?

I changed scales for couple of songs and they still sound the same though a little bit different.

Why do the sheet music notation always specify the scale if players can change scale?

[SincereCorgi]

Yes, any song can be played in any scale.* Often people will change the key (scale) of a song so that it will fit a particular singer's voice better. For instance, a woman with a high voice would prefer a different key than a man with a low voice.

Sheet music sets a song in a particular key because either 1) the person who wrote the song liked the way it sounded in that key (not too high, not too low) or 2) the person who arranged the music found that key to be suitable based on factors like what instruments might be playing it or what might be easiest for an amateur to read.

*Chill out, just intonation people.

[DavidKOS]

But that's not changing the scale itself. That changes key only.

No matter what key a song is in it has a certain pattern of intervals to be that particular song. Changing the tonic only shifts the key, in the same way that a guitar player shifts key by using a capo. The pattern of the chords and melody stay the same but the key is different as the capo is placed on various frets.

Now, there is a trick of taking a melody that is in a certain scale like "Jingle Bells", which is in major, and playing it in a truly different scale, like minor or something else. This creates a new but related melody and is not the same thing as changing key, changing the actual tonal center.

[mobi]

Are there some scales which is easier to play in Mandolin?

Are the keys with open string (e.g. G/D/A major) easier?

I am finding C major is bit more difficult than D but may be that's just me.

[mandelect]

....Why do the sheet music notation always specify the scale if players can change scale?

Imagine for one moment, if all the individual would be members of an orchestra had decided to learn a particular piece in the key and scale they were most comfortable with. They then get together and try to play that piece of music ....total chaos. If you want to jam with others, then you stand a better chance of fitting in if you learn the tune in it's conventional written key ...if it has one. But maybe you don't want to fit in; I never did ...in which case learn and transpose stuff into whichever key and scale that excites you ...or is easier for you.

Scales that use lots of open strings can appear easier when you first start to play the mandolin, later on when you are more proficient this is not necessarily going to be the case. For the McReynolds crosspicking style of mandolin playing, keys and scales which use open strings are almost essential.

[Bertram Henze]

Now, there is a trick of taking a melody that is in a certain scale like "Jingle Bells", which is in major, and playing it in a truly different scale, like minor or something else.

You may do that to "Aunt Rhody", for instance

[Bertram Henze]

Why do the sheet music notation always specify the scale if players can change scale?

When several musicians play the same piece together, it is convenient if they have all practised it in the same key.

Are the keys with open string (e.g. G/D/A major) easier?

I am finding C major is bit more difficult than D but may be that's just me.

Yes to that, but you should try F# major.

[ralph johansson]

Are there some scales which is easier to play in Mandolin?

Are the keys with open string (e.g. G/D/A major) easier?

I am finding C major is bit more difficult than D but may be that's just me.

The keys of F,C,D,G are the easiest in one respect: you can play all scale notes in open position with just three fingers. But I believe it's important to get your pinkie working right away. When I was learning the mandolin the one piece of instruction I got was to not use open strings at all, in the beginning. It worked fine with me; in time I realized that the choice between an open note or the same note at the 7th fret often was dictated by pick economy.

I don't know what advice to give to a beginner; when I started playing the mandolin about 47 years ago I already played the guitar and knew basic theory. I simply started playing. On the guitar, 57 years ago, I learned more systematically: key by key, starting with C, and proceeding along the circle of fifths both ways: C, F, G, Bb, D, etc., e.g., adding a sharp or flat in each step.

[UsuallyPickin]

The question has been well answered both in theory and in practice. The advice above is correct that some keys "lay out " more easily on the mandolin than others when first starting out. Learning to play in closed positions , without open strings , is the fastest way to learn how to move from key to key with a given tune. And then ultimately how to play what you hear either at a jam or in your head. Yes certain songs are primarily played in a "given " key so learn it in that key first. Learning to play Whiskey Before Breakfast in Bd is a good exercise but expecting to hear it played in that key at a jam will likely be disappointing. Luck and patience R/

[Richard J]

You may do that to "Aunt Rhody", for instance

Fingerpicking? How the heck to you do that.

[Bertram Henze]

Fingerpicking? How the heck to you do that.

Take
- 1 Thumbpick
- 3 fingerpicks
- wide-fretboard OM.
Mix properly.
You can see it in better visual quality here.

Now back to the topic...

[T.D.Nydn]

In regular tuning,try playing " smoke gets in your eyes" ,,it's in Db,,,,not my favorite key....

[EdHanrahan]

Are there some scales which is easier to play in Mandolin?
Are the keys with open string (e.g. G/D/A major) easier?

Not quite the question asked, but related:
Several years back, HBO had a dramatic series about New Orleans after the flood. It was named Treme (French, as in "treh-may"), the neighborhood in question. (Still available on demand.)

One high point was LOTS of close-up live-on-set music, performed by regular characters, name N.O. musicians (Dr. John, the Nevilles, et al), and outside guests (Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello ...)

AND, you could play along, or at least chord along, with most of it. Based on the instruments in use, the key usually came from among this fairly limited selection:
fiddle or mandolin: G, D, A
acoustic guitar: C, A, G, E, D
electric guitar: E, A
brass: F, Bb, Eb

(BTW: Getting ahead but, "CAGED" is an acronym for a system of learning keys/chords/scales up the guitar neck. Once you're familiar, the concept fairly applies to mandolin as well, but I've never seen it advertised as such.)

[pointpergame]

Mobi,

I'd like to make two points to help you with your question. This is mentioned above, but embedded in other information. To the music theory superstars on the forum, I understand that this info is not comprehensive and doesn't cover every loophole in the musical rules.

1) I'm fairly certain you mean "key," not "scale." As suggested above, there's a difference even though at times the terms overlap. It's essential on your mandolin journey to get a good grasp on the distinction.

2) Perhaps you already play the piano. The keyof "C" is "natural." The instrument is organized around the white keys. They represent the scale of C major when you start the scale on "C." It would appear at first glance that "C" would be an equally good key for the mandolin because each of the 4 opens strings is natural. That is, no sharps or flats. But it turns out, the G and the D open strings make good bottom notes for the keys of G and D, So those, along with A and sometimes E, are the more "comfortable" keys...at least for beginners

While this is a broad strokes answer, it might help you grasp why there's a difference.

[SincereCorgi]

Now, there is a trick of taking a melody that is in a certain scale like "Jingle Bells", which is in major, and playing it in a truly different scale, like minor or something else. This creates a new but related melody and is not the same thing as changing key, changing the actual tonal center.

I have a coworker who's locked in a Sisyphean effort to put 'Sleepwalk' in a minor key.

[mrmando]

Now, there is a trick of taking a melody that is in a certain scale like "Jingle Bells", which is in major, and playing it in a truly different scale, like minor or something else. This creates a new but related melody and is not the same thing as changing key, changing the actual tonal center.

Try Jingle Bells in freygish! Cool tune. C minor with a B natural.

[DavidKOS]

Try Jingle Bells in freygish! Cool tune. C minor with a B natural.

We used to play "Turkey in the Straw" in freygish/hijaz mode - and called it "Turkish in the Straw".

[EdHanrahan]

Why do the sheet music notation always specify the scale if players can change scale?

Because every human endeavor, by definition, has to have a starting place. You can't readily change TO something without knowing where you're starting FROM.

I guess music COULD be expressed verbally as in the "Close Encounters ..." movie, but that could be a bit clunky:
"Go up a fifth. Go down a major third. Go down a minor second...".

And a whole lot worse for the British, who might have to move by a hemidemisemiquaver. Yep, I'll shut up now!

[Randi Gormley]

I've often wondered if some keys were chosen for songs/music because they were first sung, and the individual human voice has a certain range. F'rinstance I recall reading the song "Moon River" was composed so that Audrey Hepburn could sing it -- she had a limited range, and the composer only had a few notes to play with. You could play it in any key once you knew the tune, but it was originally written with a specific singer in mind.

I also recall reading that whatever key you learned a tune/song in, that was the one you heard in your head when you thought of it and everything else sounded wrong. People do, apparently, default to that key even if it's not their most comfortable simply because that's how they first heard it.

I play ITM, and some tunes are just IN a specific key. Probably because it's group music -- certainly soloists will take a tune and play it in a different key (thinking Mary Bergen and her C whistle), but when it comes time to play in session with other musicians, everybody defaults to the key that the tune is in. I've never been to a session that played standards in any key but the one we all know ... my teacher once, in a kindly way, showed me a copy of some Irish piece in a key he found more melodic than the one it was usually played in. I played it and it was a very nice solo piece. He asked if I wanted a copy of the music and I said that it wouldn't do me any good. It wasn't the key the tune was played in. He, of course, wasn't limited by ITM tradition and I'm not certain I explained it well. We agreed not to play ITM music during lessons, and we were both happy. There are, certainly, tunes that move from key to key -- I'm thinking Pinch of Snuff -- but playing something in a specific key may be tied to the genre as well as other factors. My 2 cents.

[David L]

Try Jingle Bells in freygish! Cool tune. C minor with a B natural.

C minor with a B natural is not freygish, it is C harmonic minor. Freygish has a minor 2, major 3, minor 6, and minor7.

[David L]

Because every human endeavor, by definition, has to have a starting place. You can't readily change TO something without knowing where you're starting FROM.

I guess music COULD be expressed verbally as in the "Close Encounters ..." movie, but that could be a bit clunky:
"Go up a fifth. Go down a major third. Go down a minor second...".

And a whole lot worse for the British, who might have to move by a hemidemisemiquaver. Yep, I'll shut up now!

Hemidemisemiquavers are sixty-fourth notes and have nothing to do with the pitch.

[Bertram Henze]

We used to play "Turkey in the Straw" in freygish/hijaz mode - and called it "Turkish in the Straw".

I did something like that to Mountain Road once.

[Paul Cowham]

Talking of jingle bells, I find this to be an interesting video, Mike show you how to play the tune in various ways. As people have said you can transpose any tune to any key (think of putting a capo on a guitar), on the mando if you don't use any open strings then just move your hands up and down the neck to play in different keys

[pointpergame]

I also recall reading that whatever key you learned a tune/song in, that was the one you heard in your head when you thought of it and everything else sounded wrong

A funny data point: This could be just bad science; I've never felt the need to keep a log and challenge my generalization, but... There are a couple fantastic college stations in my area where the DJ's play bluegrass / folk / etc for four hours at a stretch. I'll walk around the house with a mandolin hanging from its strap and play along. The curious part is it seems that they often spin several songs in a row that are in the same key. That would hardly be remarkable, but sometimes it's an uncommon key for the genre...like B-flat, or F. I've often wondered if the key rings in the DJ's head and that biases their next choice.

[mrmando]

C minor with a B natural is not freygish, it is C harmonic minor. Freygish has a minor 2, major 3, minor 6, and minor7.

My bad. Well, it sounds cool in harmonic minor but a little goofy in freygish, I'm afraid.