Scales view provides an excellent entry point for beginners to start learning the fundamentals of chords and scales. It also serves as an excellent refresher for intermediate players whose knowledge of harmony has become rusty.
To enable/disable Scales view, hold Shift then press the Scale button.
When Scales view is active, notes will adhere to the scale you select, whether playing the keys or using the Sequencer.
These scales range from traditional scales of Western music (C Major, E Dorian etc.) to non-Western ones like Marva. You can switch between scales in the Scale Settings (see Scale settings).
When Scale is enabled, the LEDs above the keys have the following behaviour:
With Scales view on, playing keys (either dimly or brightly lit) guarantees you are playing notes within your chosen scale.
Turn the rotary knob above ‘Type’ to choose one of the following scales:
Turning the knob above ‘Sequence Transpose’ applies a transpose value to the played notes coming from the Sequencer. In other words, it shifts sequenced parts by a set amount (e.g., five semitones).
It also functions independently of Root and Type, which apply a scale to Sequencer parts without transposing notes.
You can transpose your Sequence up or down by 11 semitones (half-steps).
When you’re in the Scale Setting menu you can also control the Sequence Transpose setting with the 8x2 grid of pads. This method of transposition gives you a more performable way of transposing the sequence.
By default, the pads display a chromatic keyboard, and you can set the transposition to between 0-11 semitones. You can use the Down arrow to the left of the pads to access negative transpose values in the range of -11 to 0 semitones.
The screen area labelled ‘Scale Mode’ changes the way Scale view handles notes not in the selected scale. These settings behave as follows:
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Snap - Notes outside the scale ‘snap’ up or down to the nearest scale note.
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Filter - Notes not in the scale don’t play (i.e., not snapped to a correct note).
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Display Only - Notes not in the scale pass unmodified. This setting makes key LEDs a ‘guide’ for your playing, leaving you free to use non-diatonic notes (notes not in the scale).
You can enable scales mode for each Part. To do this press the soft buttons above the pads (below the screens). A Part with a white background has Scales enabled, a part with a black background will not have scales enabled.
This setting is useful for drums. Since a typical drum bank is not arranged by pitch, playing it with a scale wouldn’t work. You might want to turn Scale mode off while playing your drum parts and keep it on for your synth, bass, strings etc.