Music theory games > Lessons > Pitch of sounds > Scales > Major scales > D Major scale

D Major scale

the D major scale has just a two sharps (2 ♯) and according to the order of sharps they are the F sharp and the C sharp (F♯ & C♯).
The names of the notes in the D major scale are: D E F♯ G A B C♯

Like all other major scales, D major scale is composed by this sequence of whole steps and half steps (tones and semitones ):

:1 Whole step / 1 Whole step / 1 half step / 1 Whole step / 1 Whole step / 1 Whole step / 1 half step

: 1 Tone / 1 Tone / 1 semitone / 1 Tone / 1 Tone / 1 Tone / 1 semitone

whole steps and half steps in D major scale

Key signature of D major scale

The key signature of D Major has two sharps (2♯).

key signature 2 sharps

D Major scale in most common clefs

Here is D major scale in most common clefs: treble clef, bass clef, tenor clef and alto clef.

D Major scale in treble clef (G-clef)

Below is the D major scale in treble clef:

D Major scale in bass clef

Below is the D major scale in bass clef:

D Major scale in alto clef

Below is the D major scale in alto clef:

D Major scale in tenor clef

Below is the D major scale in tenor clef:

Scale degrees of D major

The degrees of D major scale are:

D : degree I (Tonic)
E : degree II (Supertonic)
F♯ : degree III (Mediant)
G : degree IV (Subdominant)
A : degree V (Dominant)
B : degree VI (Submediant)
C♯ : degree VII (Leading Tone)

Closely related keys of D Major

Closely related keys of D Major are:

- G Major
- A Major
- E minor
- B minor
- F sharp minor

Relative minor key of D Major

The relative minor key of D Major is B minor and below if the B minor natural scale:

Parallel Key of D Major

Parallel Key of D Major (or homonymous key) is D minor scale, here is the D harmonic minor scale :

Leading Tone of D Major

The leading Tone of D Major is C sharp, because C sharp is the degree VII and is distant to a seventh major of the tonic, or an half step (semitone ) lower than the tonic).

Chords of D major scale

Here are triad chords for D Major scale:

Chord I : D Major (Notes: D F♯ A)
Chord II : E minor (Notes: E G B)
Chord III : F♯ minor (Notes: F♯ A C♯)
Chord IV : G Major (Notes: G B D)
Chord V : A Major (Notes: A C♯ E)
Chord VI : B minor (Notes: B D F♯)
Chord VII : C♯ diminished (Notes: C♯ E G)

D major scale on a piano

Below is the D major scale on a piano:

You will notice that only the white piano keys are used. Music notes must be played successively from left to right to obtain the ascending scale, or from right to left for the descending scale.

D major triad chord

The D major triad chord as a root note (D), a major third (D / F sharp) and a perfect fifth (D / A):

And below is the D major triad chord on a piano keyboard:

Authentic cadence (perfect cadence) in D major

Here is an Authentic cadence (perfect cadence ) in D major :

D major scale video

Here is a D major video:

D major on the circle of fifths

You can find D major on the circle of fifths and its key signature, relative minor key and closely related keys :

Famous works D major

Here are some works by famous composers composed in D major:

Pachelbel's Canon

Canon by Pachelbel (1653-1706) is composed using the key of D major, this famous canon is originally composed for three violins with basso continuo.

Aria from suite #3 in D major BWV 1068, J.S. BACH

The Aria in Suite No. 3 in D major BWV 1068 by J.S. BACH is composed in D major. Here is a free extract recorded in 1954 by the Cleveland Orchestra conducted by George Szell (Source, License Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0):