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Scale

Chromatic scale

The chromatic scale contains all twelve semitones of an octave in succession. Every step is a semitone, and no note is singled out: it has no tonic and no key. It is usually written ascending with sharps and descending with flats.

Notes per octave
twelve
Steps
semitones only (100 cents each in equal temperament)
Spelling
ascending with ♯, descending with ♭
Key
none, no note is the tonic

Everything the piano has

On the piano the white and black keys together make twelve notes per octave. If you play them one after another, the chromatic scale results. The name comes from the Greek "chroma", colour. Because every step is a semitone, there are no steps of different sizes as in major or minor. The ear finds no resting point.

Ascending from C, with sharps

C C♯ D D♯ E F F♯ G G♯ A A♯ B C ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½

All twelve semitone steps. The five notes with accidentals, the black keys of the piano, are marked. Between E–F and B–C there is no black key, because a semitone already lies there.

Descending from C, with flats

C B B♭ A A♭ G G♭ F E E♭ D D♭ C ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½

The same twelve notes in the opposite direction, now written with flats instead of sharps. The piano plays it identically, only the notation changes.

Why two spellings?

Notes such as C♯ and D♭ sound the same but are written differently, see enharmonic equivalence. Ascending, you write raised notes with a sharp, descending, lowered ones with a flat. This is a convention, not a law: in a particular key the spelling follows its key signature.

Compared with the diatonic scale of seven notes, the chromatic scale is a reservoir. It serves as a run, as an ornament or to build up tension.

Try it yourself: Play the scale on the guitar by going fret by fret along one string from the open note to the 12th fret: twelve steps, each a semitone. You practise what the notes are called in Name the Note.

Common mistakes

  • Writing ascending and descending the same way: The usual practice is sharps ascending and flats descending.
  • Looking for a black key between E–F and B–C: There is none, because E–F and B–C are already semitone steps.
  • Assuming a key: The chromatic scale has none.

Continue on Maikstrings

Enharmonic Matching

Recognise notes with two names: C♯ or D♭.

Scales

Major, minor and other scales at a glance.

Name the Note

Read and name notes quickly.

Related terms

SemitoneScaleEnharmonic equivalenceSharpAccidental (in the bar)Diatonic scaleOctaveKey

Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 3 October 2026

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