In the key/scale of C major, C is the tonic In the key/scale of A minor, A is the tonic It's also known as the "first degree of the scale", because it is the first note Degrees of the C Major Scale Here's a scale of C major ascending, with all the degrees of the scale added D is the 2nd degree of the scale, E is the third, and so onList the scale degree numbers in the order they appear on the stability chart 1, 3, 5, 2, 6, 7, 1 (6 to 5;Scales and Keys Most music relies on key The set of pitches that a piece of music is organized around A key has two components a tonal center and some sort of scale, or set of pitches used for creating harmony and melody, a choice to use a pattern of seven notes forming a set called the major scaleThe major scale is a series of 7 notes that are a subset of the 12 notes in the chromatic Theory Blog Modal Scales What is the e flat major scale