Scale Runner – A Card Game That Teaches Music Theory as You Play
Created by a music-loving parent, Scale Runner is not just a game — It’s a fast, fun, theory-fueled race through the musical alphabet.
Designed for 2–6 players, ages 6+
How to play:
Race to empty your hand by playing the next correct note in the sequence. Each card must go one step higher or lower than the last, and you’ll have to think fast to stay ahead.
Use Mod(ulation) cards like Rest, Repeat, Forte, and Piano to change the rhythm and throw your opponents off track.
Play special note symbols like quarter notes, half notes, dotted half notes, and whole notes to make your opponents pick up extra cards and fall behind!
If you get stuck, draw a new card to jump back into the race. The first player to get rid of all their cards wins!
What’s Included
97 poker-sized cards:
63 melody cards
27 mod(ulation) cards
3 bilingual instruction cards (English/French)
4 cheat sheet cards (2 English, 2 French)
Game Overview
Scale Runner races you through the musical alphabet and builds quick thinking and note fluency without you even realizing it.
Players master the note order from C to B, pick up music terms like forte, piano, rest, and repeat, and think fast under pressure, all while racing to play the next correct note.
The tricky wraparound from G back to A keeps everyone on their toes, turning every game into a fast and exciting sprint through music theory.
Quick to learn, endlessly replayable, and packed with sneaky educational value, Scale Runner transforms learning into a race you’ll want to run again and again.
Why You’ll Love It:
No music experience required to play.
Teaches note order, musical terms, and sequencing skills.
Great for families, classrooms, and homeschool settings.
Quick, interactive, screen-free learning
Canadian-designed and women-owned
Play your way through a music theory lesson with zero pressure and maximum fun.
We love that we have an accessible game that we can play with the kids to help grow their love and appreciation of music!
A
Ashley D
Beyond being a great game for introducing kids to musical theory, it's just a great game! We've had fun playing it with kids from 5 - 11, it even keep us grown-ups entertained! When friends come over I often hear: let's play it again!
The cards a vibrant and sturdy, so I expect we'll get to enjoy playing Scale Runner for years to come.
J
Julia Bee
Scale Runner is a fun game for children (and adults) to learn basic musical theory (scales from C to B). The cards have both the treble clef and bass clef notes and the game can be modified for younger learners. My daughter has been asking to play daily and it doesn’t take long to play a round. She also loves just looking at the cards on her own, which is a bonus! This is a good game for kids who are reluctant or resistant to musical theory as it’s fun, engaging and compliments the theory beginners are already learning.
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