Anhemitonic scale

Min'yō scale on D,[1] equivalent to yo scale on C,[2] an

anhemitonic scale Play (help·info).

Miyako-bushi scale on D, equivalent to in scale on D,[3]

a hemitonic scale Play (help·info).
Musicology commonly classifies scales as
either hemitonic or anhemitonic.
Hemitonic scales contain one or more
semitones, while anhemitonic scales do
not contain semitones. For example, in
traditional Japanese music, the
anhemitonic yo scale is contrasted with
the hemitonic in scale.[4] The simplest and
most commonly used scale in the world is
the atritonic anhemitonic "major"
pentatonic scale. The whole tone scale is
also anhemitonic.

Hungarian minor scale on C, a cohemitonic scale.[5]

Play (help info)
 Play (help·info)

A special subclass of the hemitonic scales

is the cohemitonic scales.[6] Cohemitonic
scales contain two or more semitones
(making them hemitonic) such that two or
more of the semitones appear
consecutively in scale order. For example,
the Hungarian minor scale in C includes
F♯, G, and A♭ in that order, with a semitone
between F♯ and G, and then a semitone
between G and A♭.
Octatonic scales on C, hemitonic but ancohemitonic
Play (help·info).

Ancohemitonic scales, in contrast, either

contain no semitones (and thus are
anhemitonic), or contain semitones (being
hemitonic) where none of the semitones
appear consecutively in scale order.[7]
Some authors, however, do not include
anhemitonic scales in their definition of
ancohemitonic scales. Examples of
ancohemitonic scales are numerous, as
ancohemitonia is favored over
cohemitonia in the world's musics:
diatonic scale, melodic major/melodic
minor, Hungarian major scale, harmonic
major scale, harmonic minor scale, and
the so-called octatonic scale.

Hemitonia is also quantified by the number

of semitones present. Unhemitonic scales
have only one semitone; dihemitonic
scales have 2 semitones; trihemitonic
scales have 3 semitones, etc. In the same
way that an anhemitonic scale is less
dissonant than a hemitonic scale, an
unhemitonic scale is less dissonant than a
dihemitonic scale.
The qualification of cohemitonia versus
ancohemitonia combines with the
cardinality of semitones, giving terms like:
dicohemitonic, triancohemitonic, and so
forth. An ancohemitonic scale is less
dissonant than a cohemitonic scale, the
count of their semitones being equal. In
general, the number of semitones is more
important to the perception of dissonance
than the adjacency (or lack thereof) of any
pair of them. Additional adjacency
between semitones (once adjacency is
present) does not necessarily increase the
dissonance, the count of semitones again
being equal.[8]
Related to these semitone classifications
are tritonic and atritonic scales. Tritonic
scales contain one or more tritones, while
atritonic scales do not contain tritones. A
special monotonic relationship exists
between semitones and tritones as scales
are built by projection, q.v. below.

The harmonic relationship of all these

categories comes from the perception that
semitones and tritones are the severest of
dissonances, and that avoiding them is
often desirable. The most-used scales
across the planet are anhemitonic. Of the
remaining hemitonic scales, the ones
most used are ancohemitonic.
Quantification of hemitonia
and its relationship to
ancohemitonia
Most of the world's music is anhemitonic,
perhaps 90%.[9] Of that other hemitonic
portion, perhaps 90% is unhemitonic,
predominating in chords of only 1
semitone, all of which are ancohemitonic
by definition.[9] Of the remaining 10%,
perhaps 90% are dihemitonic,
predominating in chords of no more than 2
semitones. The same applies to chords of
3 semitones.[10] In both later cases,
however, there is a distinct preference for
ancohemitonia, as the lack of adjacency of
any two semitones goes a long way
towards softening the increasing
dissonance.

The following table plots sonority size

(downwards on the left) against semitone
count (to the right) plus the quality of
ancohemitonia (denoted with letter A)
versus cohemitonia (denoted with letter
C). In general, ancohemitonic
combinations are fewer for a given chord
or scale size, but used much more
frequently so that their names are well
known.
 Sonority Semitone Counts

Notes Count 0 1 2 2A 2C 3 3A 3C >=4 >=4A >=4C

1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2 6 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

3 19 10 8 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

4 43 10 21 11 4 7 1 0 1 0 0 0

5 66 3 20 30 15 15 12 0 12 1 0 1

6 80 1 5 26 16 10 34 4 30 14 0 14

7 66 0 0 3 2 1 20 4 16 43 0 43

8 43 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 43 1 42

9 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 19 0 19

10 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 6

11 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1

12 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1

TOTALS 351 30 55 71 37 34 67 8 59 128 1 127

Column "0" represents the most commonly

used chords.,[8] avoiding intervals of M7
and chromatic 9ths and such
combinations of 4th, chromatic 5ths, and
6th to produce semitones. Column 1
represents chords that barely use the
harmonic degrees that column "0" avoids.
Column 2, however, represents sounds far
more intractable.[8]

Column 0, row 5 are the full but pleasant

chords: 9th, 6/9, and 9alt5 with no 7.[11]
Column "0", row "6", is the unique whole
tone scale.[12] Column "2A", row "7", a local
minimum, refers to the diatonic scale and
melodic major/melodic minor scales.[13]
Ancohemitonia, inter alii, probably makes
these scales popular. Column "2C", row "7",
another local minimum, refers to the
Neapolitan major scale, which is
cohemitonic and somewhat less common
but still popular enough to bear a name.[14]
Column "3A", row "7", another local
minimum, represents the Hungarian major
scale, and its involution, and the harmonic
major scale and involution harmonic minor
scale of the same.[15] Column "3A", row "6",
are the hexatonic analogs to these four
familiar scales,[16] one of which being the
Augmented scale,[17] and another the
analog of the Octatonic scale - which itself
appears, alone and solitary, at Column
">=4A". row "8".[18] Column "2A", row "4",
another minimum, represents a few frankly
dissonant, yet strangely resonant harmonic
combinations: mM9 with no 5, 11♭9,
dom13♭9, and M7♯11.[11]
As music tends towards increasing
dissonance through history, perhaps
someday Column 2 will be as acceptable
as even Column 1 might be, and Column 3
will finally have a place in the harmony of
the world.

Note, too, that in the highest cardinality

row for each column before the terminal
zeros begin, the sonority counts are small,
except for row "7" and the "3" columns of
all sorts. This explosion of hemitonic
possibility associated with note cardinality
7 (and above) possibly marks the lower
bound for the entity called "scale" (in
contrast to "chord").
As shown in the table, anhemitonia is a
property of the domain of note sets
cardinality 2 through 6, while
ancohemitonia is a property of the domain
of note sets cardinality 4 through 8 (3
through 8 for improper ancohemitonia
including unhemitonia as well). This
places anhemitonia generally in the range
of "chords" and ancohemitonia generally in
the range of "scales".

Example: hemitonia and

tritonia of the perfect-fifth
projection
The interrelationship of semitones,
tritones, and increasing note count can be
demonstrated by taking five consecutive
pitches from the circle of fifths;[19] starting
on C, these are C, G, D, A, and E.
Transposing the pitches to fit into one
octave rearranges the pitches into the
major pentatonic scale: C, D, E, G, A. This
scale is anhemitonic, having no semitones;
it is atritonic, having no tritones.

play (help·info
)

In addition, this is the maximal number of

notes taken consecutively from the circle
of fifths for which is it still possible to
avoid a semitone.[20]

Adding another note from the circle of

fifths gives the major hexatonic scale: C D
E G A B. This scale is hemitonic, having a
semitone between B and C; it is atritonic,
having no tritones. In addition, this is the
maximal number of notes taken
consecutively from the circle of fifths for
which is it still possible to avoid a
tritone.[21]

Adding still another note from the circle of

fifths gives the major heptatonic scale: C D
E F G A B (when the fifth is added from
below the tonic). This scale is strictly
ancohemitonic, having 2 semitones but
not consecutively; it is tritonic, having a
tritone between F and B. Past this point in
the projection series, no new intervals are
added to the Interval vector analysis of the
scale,[22] but cohemitonia results.

P7 projection/major heptatonic on C Play (help·info).

Adding still another note from the circle of

fifths gives the major octatonic scale: C D
E F F♯ G A B (when the fifth is added from
above the top note in the series--B in this
case). This scale is cohemitonic, having 3
semitones together at E F F♯ G, and
tritonic as well.[22]

Similar behavior is seen across all scales

generally, that more notes in a scale tend
cumulatively to add dissonant intervals
(specifically: hemitonia and tritonia in no
particular order) and cohemitonia not
already present. While also true that more
notes in a scale tend to allow more and
varied intervals in the interval vector, there
might be said to be a point of diminishing
returns, when qualified against the also
increasing dissonance, hemitonia, tritonia
and cohemitonia. It is near these points
where most popular scales lie.[22]

Cohemitonic and hemitonic

scales
Though less used than ancohemitonic
scales, the cohemitonic scales have an
interesting property. The sequence of two
(or more) consecutive halfsteps in a scale
presents the opportunity to "split" the scale
by placing the tonic note of the scale on
the middle note of the halfstep span. This
allows a leading tone from below resolving
upwards, as well as a descending flat-
supertonic upper neighbor, both
converging on the tonic. The split turns a
weakness - dissonance of cohemitonia - to
a strength: contrapuntal convergence on
the tonic. It is very common that a
cohemitonic (or even hemitonic) scale
(e.g.: Hungarian minor { C D E♭ F♯ G A♭ B })
be displaced preferentially to a mode
where the halfstep span is split (e.cont.:
Double harmonic scale { G A♭ B C D E♭ F♯
}), and by which name we more commonly
know the same circular series of
intervals.[23] Cohemitonic scales with
multiple halfstep spans present the
additional possibility of modulating
between tonics each furnished with both
upper and lower neighbors.
Modes of heptatonic scales
and the key signature system

Key signature A major / F♯ minor, an ancohemitonic

heptatonic scale.

Western music's system of key signature

is based upon the assumption of a
heptatonic scale of 7 notes, such that
there are never more than 7 accidentals
present in a valid key signature. The global
preference for anhemitonic scales
combines with this basis to highlight the 6
ancohemitonic heptatonic scales,[24] most
of which are common in romantic music,
and of which most Romantic music is
composed:

Diatonic scale
Melodic major/melodic minor
Hungarian major scale
involution of Hungarian major
Harmonic major scale
Harmonic minor scale.

These cohemitonic scales are less

common:
 Double harmonic major scale
Neapolitan major scale
Neapolitan minor scale
Ionian ♭5 scale
Persian scale
Locrian ♯7 scale.

Adhering to the definition of heptatonic

scales, these all possess 7 modes each,
and are suitable for use in modal
mutation.[25] They appear in the table
above in Row "7", Columns "2A" and "3A".

Table of key signatures

The following lists the key signatures for
all possible untransposed modes of the
aforementioned heptatonic scales using
the note C as the tonic.
 Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Diatonic F♯ Lydian

Diatonic Ionian

Diatonic B♭ Mixolydian

Diatonic B♭, E♭ Dorian

Diatonic B♭, E♭, A♭ Aeolian

Diatonic B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭ Phrygian

Diatonic B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭ Locrian

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Melodic F♯, G♯ Lydian Augmented

Melodic F♯, B♭ Acoustic, Lydian Dominant

Melodic E♭ Melodic minor (ascending), Jazz minor

Melodic Major (descending), Aeolian Dominant,

Melodic B♭, A♭
Mixolydian ♭13

Melodic B♭, E♭, D♭ Dorian ♭9

Melodic B♭, E♭, A♭, G♭ Half Diminished, Locrian ♮2, Semilocrian

B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭,

Melodic Superlocrian, Altered
F♭

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Hungarian major F♯, G♯, E♯ Lydian Augmented ♯3

Hungarian major F♯, D♯, B♭ Hungarian Major

Hungarian major G♯, E♭ Jazz Minor ♯5

Hungarian major F♯, B♭, E♭, D♭ Ukrainian Dorian ♭9

Hungarian major E♭, A♭, G♭ Harmonic Minor ♭5

Hungarian major B♭, E♭, D♭, G♭, F♭ Altered Dominant ♮6

E♭, D♭, G♭, F♭, B ,

Hungarian major Ultralocrian 6
A

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

involution of Hungarian F♯, G♯, D♯, E♯ Super Lydian Augmented ♮6

major

involution of Hungarian
F♯, G♯, E♭ Lydian Augmented ♭3
major

involution of Hungarian
F♯, B♭, D♭ Involution of Hungarian Major
major

involution of Hungarian
E♭, G♭ Jazz Minor ♭5
major

involution of Hungarian
B♭, E♭, D♭, F♭ Dorian ♭9 ♭11
major

involution of Hungarian
E♭, A♭, G♭, B Semilocrian 7
major

involution of Hungarian B♭, E♭, D♭, G♭, F♭,

Altered Dominant 6
major A

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Harmonic major F♯, G♯, D♯ Lydian Augmented ♯2

Harmonic major F♯, E♭ Lydian Diminished

Harmonic major A♭ Harmonic Major

Harmonic major B♭, D♭ Phrygian Dominant ♮6

Harmonic major B♭, E♭, G♭ Diminished Dorian

Harmonic major B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, F♭ Superphrygian

Harmonic major E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, B Locrian Diminished

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Harmonic minor F♯, D♯ Lydian ♯2

Harmonic minor G♯ Ionian Augmented

Harmonic minor F♯, B♭, E♭ Ukrainian Dorian

Harmonic minor E♭, A♭ Harmonic Minor

Harmonic minor B♭, A♭, D♭ Phrygian Dominant

Harmonic minor B♭, E♭, D♭, G♭ Locrian ♮6

E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, F♭,

Harmonic minor Ultralocrian
B
 Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Hungarian minor F♯, D♯, A♯ Lydian ♯2 ♯6

Hungarian minor G♯, D♯ Ionian Augmented ♯2

Hungarian minor F♯, E♭, A♭ Hungarian Minor

Hungarian minor A♭, D♭ Double harmonic

Hungarian minor B♭, D♭, G♭ Oriental

Hungarian minor E♭, A♭, D♭, F♭, B Ultraphrygian

Hungarian minor A♭, D♭, G♭, B , E Locrian Diminished 3

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Neapolitan major F♯, G♯, A♯ Leading Whole-Tone

Neapolitan major F♯, G♯, B♭ Lydian Augmented Dominant

Neapolitan major F♯, B♭, A♭ Lydian Minor

Neapolitan major E♭, D♭ Neapolitan Major

Neapolitan major B♭, A♭, G♭ Locrian Major

Neapolitan major B♭, E♭, A♭, G♭, F♭ Altered ♮2

B♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, F♭,

Neapolitan major Altered 3
E

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Neapolitan minor F♯, A♯ Lydian ♯6

Neapolitan minor D♯ Ionian ♯2

Neapolitan minor G♯, B♭ Mixoydian Augmented

Neapolitan minor F♯, B♭, E♭, A♭ Hungarian Gypsy

Neapolitan minor E♭, A♭, D♭ Neapolitan Minor

Neapolitan minor B♭, A♭, D♭, G♭ Locrian Dominant

A♭, D♭, G♭, F♭, B ,

Neapolitan minor Ultralocrian 3
E

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

F♯, G♯, D♯, A♯,

Ionian ♭5 Super Lydian Augmented
E♯
Ionian ♭5 F♯, D♭ Lydian ♭2

Ionian ♭5 G♭ Ionian ♭5

Ionian ♭5 B♭, E♭, F♭ Dorian ♭4

Ionian ♭5 B♭, E♭, A♭, B Aeolian 7

Ionian ♭5 B♭, A♭, D♭, E Phrygian 2

Ionian ♭5 B♭, E♭, D♭, G♭, A Locrian 6

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Persian F♯, A♯, E♯ Lydian ♯6 ♯3

Persian D♯, A♯ Ionian ♯2 ♯6

Persian G♯, D♯, B♭ Mixolydian Augmented ♯2

Persian F♯, E♭, A♭, D♭ Neapolitan Minor ♯4

Persian A♭, D♭, G♭ Persian

Persian A♭, D♭, G♭, B , E Ultraphrygian 3

D♭, G♭, B , E , A
Persian Altered Altered ♮4

Base scale Accidentals Mode name

Locrian ♮7 F♯, E♯ Lydian ♯3

Locrian ♮7 A♯ Ionian ♯6

Locrian ♮7 D♯, B♭ Mixolydian ♯2

Locrian ♮7 G♯, B♭, E♭ Dorian Augmented

Locrian ♮7 F♯, B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭ Phrygian ♯4

Locrian ♮7 E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭ Locrian ♮7

D♭, G♭, F♭, B , E ,

Locrian ♮7 Altered Altered
A

Common citation in theories

Dimitri Tymoczko, in A Geometry of
Music: Harmony and Counterpoint in the
Extended Common Practice (ISBN 978-
0195336672), includes hemitonia in
calculation formulas for contrapuntal
smoothness and harmonic force
transfer.
Brett Willmott, in Mel Bays Complete
Book of Harmony Theory and Voicing
(ISBN 978-1562229948), restricts the
scope of his guitar chord voicing to
ancohemitonic tetrads.
Michael Keith, in From Polychords to
Polya : Adventures in Musical
Combinatorics (ISBN 978-0963009708),
 draws his list of basic harmonies as
anhemitonic sonorities.

Miscellanea
All heptatonic and larger scales are
hemitonic (ditonic or better) and
tritonic.[26]
All octatonic scales save one ("the
octatonic" or Diminished scale) are
cohemitonic.[26]
All enneatonic and larger scales are
cohemitonic.[26]
All sonorities with 5 or more semitones
are cohemitonic.[26]
The set complement of a cohemitonic
scale is often an ancohemitonic scale,
and vice versa.
Unhemitonic scales never have more
than 6 notes, and are always
ancohemitonic.[26]
Dihemitonic and trihemitonic scales
never have more than 7 notes.[26]
Tetrahemitonic and pentahemitonic
scales never have more than 8 notes.[26]
Hexahemitonic and heptahemitonic
scales never have more than 9 notes.[26]
Octahemitonic and enneahemitonic
scales never have more than 10
notes.[26]
 There is no 12ET scale with exactly 11
halfsteps.[26]

References
1. Susan Miyo Asai (1999). Nōmai Dance
Drama, p. 126. ISBN 978-0-313-30698-3.
2. Minoru Miki, Marty Regan, Philip Flavin
(2008). Composing for Japanese
instruments, p. 2. ISBN 978-1-58046-273-0.
3. Titon, Jeff Todd (1996). Worlds of Music:
An Introduction to the Music of the World's
Peoples, p. 373. ISBN 0-02-872612-X.
4. Anon. (2001) "Ditonus", The New Grove
Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second
edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John
Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers;
Bence Szabolcsi (1943), "Five-Tone Scales
and Civilization", Acta Musicologica 15,
Fasc. 1/4 (January–December): pp. 24–34,
citation on p. 25.
5. Kahan, Sylvia (2009). In Search of New
Scales, p. 39. ISBN 978-1-58046-305-8.
Cites Liszt. Des Bohémians, p. 301.
6. Christ, William (1966). Materials and
Structure of Music, v.1, p. 39. Englewood
Cliffs: Prentice–Hall. LOC 66-14354.
7. Tymoczko, Dmitri (1997). "The
Consecutive-Semitone Constraint on Scalar
Structure: A Link between Impressionism
and Jazz", Intégral, v.11, (1997), p. 135-179.
8. Keith, Michael. 1991. From Polychords to
Polya : Adventures in Musical
Combinatorics, p. 45. Princeton: Vinculum
Press. ISBN 978-0963009708.
9. Keith, Michael. 1991. From Polychords to
Polya : Adventures in Musical
Combinatorics, p. 43. Princeton: Vinculum
Press. ISBN 978-0963009708.
10. Keith, Michael. 1991. From Polychords
to Polya : Adventures in Musical
Combinatorics, p. 48-49. Princeton:
Vinculum Press. ISBN 978-0963009708.
11. Wilmott, Brett. (1994) Mel Bays
Complete Book of Harmony Theory and
Voicing, p.210. Pacific, Missouri: Mel Bay.
ISBN 978-1562229948.
12. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.367. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
13. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.362-363. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
14. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.363. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
15. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.364. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
16. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.369. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
17. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.368. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
18. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.360. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
19. Cooper, Paul. 1973. Perspectives in
Music Theory: An Historical-Analytical
Approach, p. 18. New York: Dodd, Mead.
ISBN 0-396-06752-2.
20. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.29. New York:
Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-8138.
21. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p.40. New York:
Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-8138.
22. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p. 33. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
23. Schillinger, Joseph. (1941) The
Schillinger System of Musical Composition,
v.1, p. 113ff. New York: Carl Fischer.
ISBN 0306775212.
24. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p. 362ff. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
25. Christ, William (1966). Materials and
Structure of Music, v.1, p. 45. Englewood
Cliffs: Prentice-Hall. LOC 66-14354.
26. Hanson, Howard. (1960) Harmonic
Materials of Modern Music, p. 362 ff. New
York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LOC 58-
8138.
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