Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns

The monumental compilation of unfamiliar melodic patterns, an indispensible reference book for musicians in developing superior technique

Since its first publication in 1947, great musicians and composers of all genres―from Arnold Schoenberg to John Coltrane―have sworn by this legendary volume and its comprehensive vocabulary of melodic patterns for composition and improvisation.

One of the most influential works by the late, renowned Russian-American conductor and composer Nicolas Slonimsky, the Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns is the ultimate sourcebook for composers and performers, and has influenced many jazz musicians and composers over the last seventy years. There is a definite symmetry and logic in Slonimsky’s examples: what appear to be random patterns are actually mathematical combinations of some or all of the twelve notes in music. As the musician plays through the examples, the patterns will unfold and become more obvious.

Presented in the form of piano scales and melodic studies and arranged according to the principal interval of each particular section, the Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns is an invaluable practice and study source that has been used and endorsed by musicians at every end of the musical spectrum.