What if we had six note names in notation instead of seven?

1. Are there 7 or 12 notes?
2. Are there 7 or 8 notes in a scale?
3. Why are there only 7 notes in an octave?
4. Can a scale have more than 7 notes?

Are there 7 or 12 notes?

Just to clarify in a simple way: There are 7 notes in a key -be it major or minor (which corresponds to a major or minor scale). There are 12 notes total (called the chromatic scale) before starting over again in the next octave.

Are there 7 or 8 notes in a scale?

Scales in traditional Western music generally consist of seven notes and repeat at the octave. Notes in the commonly used scales (see just below) are separated by whole and half step intervals of tones and semitones.

Why are there only 7 notes in an octave?

The next pitch is called the octave because it's the eighth note (just as an octopus has eight legs). More than a thousand years ago the letters of the Roman alphabet were adopted to refer to these, and since there were only seven the letters ran A, B, C, D, E, F, G.

Can a scale have more than 7 notes?

Heptatonic scale, also called Seven-note Scale, or Seven-tone Scale, musical scale made up of seven different tones. The major and minor scales of Western art music are the most commonly known heptatonic scales, but different forms of seven-tone scales exist.