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Music Theory

Clay Target Shooting: A Game to Write Scales

Write the key signature and the scale, and break the target. This is clay target shooting (UK: clay pigeon shooting). Every target is a scale: first you draw its key signature on the staff, accidental by accidental (that loads the shotgun), and then you write the scale note by note with that key signature in place (that is the shot). If everything is right, the target shatters. Three targets per game, major and minor scales, and any key signature. There is no microphone and nothing to install, and you can play alone or in a group, taking turns.

How to play

  1. Say how many players there are and choose the level: Easy, Medium or Hard. If several of you are playing, type each player’s name and pick your musicians.
  2. Write the key signature. Choose sharp or flat and tap the staff where each accidental goes, in order (F, C, G… for sharps; B, E, A… for flats). If the scale has none, press “Key signature done” without writing anything.
  3. Write the scale by tapping each line or space. The notes already carry the accidentals of the key signature: mark with ♭ ♮ ♯ only those that depart from it. On a phone, touch and drag your finger to fine-tune the note while you watch the magnifier, and let go to write it.
  4. Fire. If the whole scale is right, you break the target. If not, the game shows you the right key signature or scale in green.
  5. Shoot all 3 targets. If you play as a group, the targets alternate and, if there is a tie, it is settled target by target.

How scoring works

Each target you break is worth 1 point, and it only breaks if the scale is completely right: the key signature, with its accidentals in place and in order, and every note of the scale. There is no half a target: one wrong note and it gets away. With 3 targets per game, the maximum is 3 points, and on the world leaderboard your points add up from game to game.

Time does not score. You get 30 seconds for the key signature and 75 for the scale (120 for the melodic minor, which has 15 notes), only so the game does not stall.

The scales at each level

  • Easy: major scales and natural minor scales.
  • Medium: adds the harmonic minor, with the 7th degree raised.
  • Hard: adds the melodic minor, written going up and coming back down: it rises with the 6th and 7th degrees raised and descends natural.

At every level any key signature can come up, from no accidentals to seven. The scales are the same as in the scale exercises, minus the ones that would need double accidentals.

What this game is for

Writing a scale with its key signature is a standard theory exam exercise at conservatories, and it makes you master two things at once: which key signature each key has, and which notes depart from it in each kind of minor scale. Here is the trick: work out the key signature from the order of sharps and flats (F C G D A E B for sharps, the reverse for flats) and, in the scale, think only about what changes against it. If you would rather practice without a scoreboard, there is the exercise on building scales with a key signature. And if you like games, also try Basketball, where you recognize scales instead of writing them.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you play Clay Target Shooting?
Every target is a scale, for example “A♭ major”. First you write its key signature on the staff, accidental by accidental and in order: that loads the shotgun. Then you write the scale, note by note, with that key signature in place: that is the shot. If the key signature and all the notes are right, you break the target. If the key signature is wrong, the target flies and you cannot shoot.
How does scoring work?
Each target you break is worth 1 point, and a game has 3 targets, so the maximum is 3 points. Only the whole scale counts: one wrong note, or a wrong key signature, and the target gets away. On the world leaderboard, points add up from game to game.
Do I have to write the key signature’s accidentals on every note?
No. With the key signature in place, the notes already carry their accidentals; you only mark with a sharp, flat or natural those that depart from it, such as the raised 7th degree of the harmonic minor. If you write an accidental that the key signature already gives, it does not count as a mistake.
Which scales come up at each level?
On Easy, major and natural minor scales. Medium adds the harmonic minor, and Hard the melodic minor, written going up and down (15 notes): it rises with the 6th and 7th degrees raised and descends natural. At every level any key signature can come up, from no accidentals to seven.
Can I play in a group, for example in class?
Yes. Say how many players there are and type each player’s name. The targets alternate: each player shoots theirs in turn. If the leaders tie at the end, it is settled target by target until one player breaks it and the others do not.