Scale (music)
![Diatonic scale in the chromatic circle](/Images/godic/202412/22/Major_scale_in_the_chromatic_circle4142.png")
![The lydian mode Play , middle, functions as an intermediary between the whole tone scale Play , top, and the major scale Play , bottom.](/Images/godic/202412/22/Whole_tone,_lydian,_and_major_scales4142.PNG")
In music theory, a scale is any set of musical notes ordered by fundamental frequency or pitch. A scale ordered by increasing pitch is an ascending scale, and a scale ordered by decreasing pitch is a descending scale. Some scales contain different pitches when ascending than when descending. For example, the Melodic minor scale.