Trinity Grade 7 Piano Scales & Arpeggios

All 17 scales and arpeggios for Trinity Grade 7 piano (syllabus from 2023): 8 scales and 9 arpeggios across 4 keys. Practise each one with the right range, hands and fingering, and tick it off when it's ready.

Ready0 / 17Tick each one off when you can play it from memory

Scales — minimum speed♩ = 130in quavers: 2 notes per beat

Arpeggios — minimum speed♩ = 110in quavers: 2 notes per beat

Scales

4 octaves · hands together · f, mf or p, or crescendo/diminuendo (p–f–p) · legato or staccato (examiner's choice)

A♭ major
E major
G♯ minor (harmonic)
G♯ minor (melodic)
E minor (harmonic)
E minor (melodic)

Chromatic scale a minor third apart

4 octaves · hands starting a minor 3rd apart · f, mf or p, or crescendo/diminuendo (p–f–p) · legato or staccato (examiner's choice)

Starting on C (left hand) and E♭ (right hand)

Legato scale in thirds

2 octaves · hands separately · mf · legato · minimum speed ♩ = 70

E major

Arpeggios

4 octaves · hands together · f, mf or p, or crescendo/diminuendo (p–f–p) · legato or staccato (examiner's choice)

A♭ major
E major
G♯ minor
E minor

Diminished sevenths

4 octaves · hands together · f, mf or p, or crescendo/diminuendo (p–f–p) · legato or staccato (examiner's choice)

Starting on A♭
Starting on E

Dominant sevenths

4 octaves · hands together · f, mf or p, or crescendo/diminuendo (p–f–p) · legato or staccato (examiner's choice)

In the key of A♭ major
In the key of E major

Contrary-motion arpeggios

2 octaves · hands starting on the same note · f, mf or p, or crescendo/diminuendo (p–f–p) · legato

E major

In the exam

Trinity's technical work is these scales and arpeggios plus two exercises from the grade book. In a face-to-face exam the examiner picks from everything listed here. In a digital exam you choose set A or set B, which are smaller selections of the same items — so this checklist covers both.

Scales and arpeggios are played from memory, going up and then down, with the right hand an octave above the left when the hands move in the same direction. The dynamics and articulation are part of the requirement: practise every key both loud and soft, and legato and staccato where both are listed. Any logical fingering that gives a smooth legato is accepted. Minor scales are needed in both the harmonic and the melodic form — they're listed separately above.

The speeds are Trinity's minimum speeds, in even quavers. Practise slowly and evenly first, then use the speed trainer to work up to the minimum — a little faster is fine once it's secure.

Requirements checked against Trinity's Piano syllabus for graded exams from 2023 (online edition, February 2026). Music Scale isn't affiliated with Trinity College London — always check the official syllabus before your exam.