Major
D Major Scale on Piano
D major has two sharps, F# and C#. In the Baroque era it was a favorite key for music with trumpets, and the violin concertos of Beethoven, Brahms, and Tchaikovsky are all in D major.
Notes of the D Major Scale
| Degree | Note | Interval from root |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | D | Root |
| 2 | E | Major 2nd |
| 3 | F# | Major 3rd |
| 4 | G | Perfect 4th |
| 5 | A | Perfect 5th |
| 6 | B | Major 6th |
| 7 | C# | Major 7th |
| 8 | D | Octave |
W-W-H-W-W-W-HW · W · H · W · W · W · HRaising both F and C to F# and C# keeps the whole–whole–half pattern when starting from D.
W = whole step, H = half step.
D Major on the Staff
One octave ascending in treble clef with the key signature of D major (2 sharps: F#, C#).
Fingering
- 1D
- 2E
- 3F#
- 1G
- 2A
- 3B
- 4C#
- 5D
- 5D
- 4E
- 3F#
- 2G
- 1A
- 3B
- 2C#
- 1D
Numbers indicate fingers: 1 = thumb, 2 = index, 3 = middle, 4 = ring, 5 = little. Both rows are shown in ascending order (low note to high note). Note the left hand starts on the pinky (5) at the lowest note and crosses the middle finger over the thumb to continue upward — that is why the left-hand numbers count down before cycling again.
Diatonic Chords in D Major
The seven triads built on each scale degree. They use only the notes of this scale; real pieces often add chords with altered notes as well.
Where You Hear This Scale
Historically D major was the "bright" key of the baroque trumpet. The scale falls comfortably on stringed instruments because D and A are open strings, and on piano the right hand meets F# under finger 3 and C# under finger 4 on the way up. The Hallelujah chorus from Handel's Messiah is a famous example of D major's bright, festive sound.
Train Your Ear to Recognize This Scale
Put what you learned into practice with Fortepian's free scale identification exercise. Hear a scale and identify it — 9 progressive levels, from major and minor to modes, pentatonic, blues, and exotic scales. No signup needed.
Start scale ear training