The Circle Of Fifths

DEFINITION: The relationship among the 12 tones of the chromatic scale, their corresponding key

signatures, and the associated major and minor keys.

Charlie & Freddie

Charlie & FreddieCharlie was a straight-laced, well behaved student, with straight A’s

and a knack for organisation. The stereotypical ‘business man’, Charlie held conservative and right wing political views. Freddie was

the edgy, more creative type. He ate a raw diet and did Yoga, was very conscious of his physical and mental health, but by contrast, he was much more of a party animal and consumed large amounts of alcohol

and drugs at weekends. Freddy was much more inclined to get in trouble with the law and go against the ‘norms’ of society. He had strong left wing political views and believed in people being able to

express their ‘true-selves’.

In their final year of University, Charlie and Freddie were appointed to work on a project together. They were both studying Business, and the project involved creating a business plan for a mining company

comprising of five people. Charlie was appointed Company Director, and Freddie was given the task of marketing and resources. The other three members of the company were the miners, who had to travel 3km underground to mine for gold. They decided to call the project “The Circle of Fifths”. When asked by the examiner where this name came

from, they explained simply that they wanted a company where all five members would ‘share an equal piece of the pie’.

Unsurprisingly, considering their differences in values and beliefs, the two had a very tumultuous relationship throughout the several months

that they were asked to be involved in the project together. They disagreed on almost everything, and as the deadlines for the project began to get closer and closer, less and less was getting done. Both of them started to go out to parties and drink more and more to try

and deal with the stresses of the final year project. This naturally put more strain on the relationship, and the project suffered as a result.

Although both very talented students, they were also both very stubborn, and the project was never completed. They failed their final

exams and had to repeat the year.

During the repeated year, Freddie happened to receive the same project. This time, he was appointed company director and so he made sure to do it HIS way. He and the 3 ‘miners’ continued the

project, but this time around, Charlie wasn’t involved in the business so Freddie decided to call the business the ‘Circle of Fourths’. He ran

the business in basically the opposite way that Charlie would have.

When the two graduated from University, both passed with flying colours and both ended up creating enormous mining companies.

Both companies grew each year, and soon, they were the two of the biggest mining companies in the world.

Years later, there was an interview with both Charlie and Freddie individually.

Freddie was asked what he remembers the most about Charlie, to which he responded:

“Charlie Gets Drunk After Eight Beers”

Charlie was asked the same question about Freddie, to which he responded:

“Freddie Buys Ecstasy After Drinking Gin”

The Circle Of FifthsThe Circle Of Fifths

Charlie

Gets

Drunk

After

Eight

Beers

Freddie

Buys

Ecstasy

After

Drinking

GinMiner had to go 3km

Below ground

Conservative Charlie

(No Sharp or Flats Keys)

Fashionable Freddy

(All Flat Keys)

What is a Fifth• A fifth is the note 5 notes up from the previous

note. Note.

1. A B C D E, 2. E F G A B, 3. B C D E F

How to Find a Fifth

1. 7 semi-tones up 2. Up a fifth: One String + Two Frets Up 3. Down a fifth: One String Down, same fret

Fifths on The Neck• The entire circle of fifths can be found by playing

fret 3 on the 3rd fret of the 5th string, followed by fret 3 on the 3rd fret of the 6th string. Then do the same pattern on the 5th fret, then the 7th, then the 9th, 11th, 13th, ending back on C on the 15th fret of

the 5th string • Each consecutive note has one more sharp than

it’s previous note

Fifths on The Neck 2 • Number the fifths from the C-note from 0 - 5 • That’s how many sharps is in that key

013

245

Extra Tips

1. To find a key quickly, take the sharp at the right and go up a semi tone…

Examples:

G Major (Or E Minor)

A Major (Or F# Minor)

B Major (Or G# Minor)

In the case of flat keys, just look at the note second from the right. That is your key..

F Major (or Dm) is the only exception

Eb Major (Or C Minor)

Gb Major (Or D# Minor)

2. When writing the notes in a key, take the sharps from the previous key (in the circle of fifths), and

sharpen the 7th note of the new key.

Example: To find notes in D Major, take the sharp notes that are found in G major (F#)

F#

STEP 2: Then sharpen the 7th note of D (c).

D E F G A B C D 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Result: The “D-Major Scale” contains the notes:

D E F# G A B C# D

3. To find the relative minor key, go down 3 semi tones from current root note (or up 9 frets). The

relative minor can also be found if you go down 1 fret and skip a string

… or up 4 frets and 1 string down

Nevermind… just remember down 3 frets!

4. The relative minor of a key is the 6th note of that key. The relative major of a minor key is the third

note of that key.

5. The way a key is written on the staff depends on what the first note/chord of the song is.

1) Listen to the song and see if it sounds happy or sad. If it’s happy, it’s most likely in the major, and if it sounds sad, it’s probably in the minor.

2) Look at the first chord in the song. More often than not, the first chord will be the ‘Tonic’ chord. This means that if it’s a major chord, you’re in a major key, and if it’s a minor chord, you’re in a minor key.

3) If there’s no chords immediately obvious, look at the lowest note of the first beat. This is usually going to be the note corresponding to the major or minor key. eg. Key signature has no sharps or flats, first bass note is an a. This is in a minor.

6. Any Key Signature can be in a major key or it’s relative minor key. To check whether a song is in a major key, or in it’s relative

minor, here’s what you can do:

4. The ‘Tonic’ note should feature prominently throughout the song’s melody. The Tonic note is the root note of the 1 chord, which shows the key. The melody will often come to rest on this Tonic note.

5. The song should feel ‘stable’ and ‘complete’, with no tension when you get to the tonic chord. If the Tonic chord is Major, the key is Major, and if it’s Minor, the key is minor.

6. Singing or playing the tonic as a kind of ‘drone’ throughout the song should work if you are singing the right tonic. Try both and see which works best. This is usually the key.

7. Look at what chord the song finishes on. This, along with the beginning chord, often tells you the key of the song.

Useful Terms• Enharmonic Key/Note/Equivalent: Two keys or

notes that are exactly the same in terms of pitch and harmonic structure, but are ‘spelled’ differently. Examples include: A# and Bb or D# and Eb

• Dominant: The fifth scale degree of the scale • Subdominant: The fourth scale degree in a scale • Modulate: To change keys

• Pivot Chords: Common chords that can be found in two different keys, often used to ‘switch from one key to the next. Often, the 5th or ‘dominant’

of the new key is ‘pivoted’ into

The Circle of Fourths

• The circle of fourths is basically the same as the circle of fifths, except you travel around the circle counter clockwise.

• You don’t need to know both • The only real advantage of the circle of fourths is

that the guitar is tuned in fourths

The Circle of Fourths

132

465

• Number the fourths from the F-note down the first fret from 1 - 6. On strings 1 and 2, use the 2nd fret

• That’s how many flats is in that key