Circle of Fifths - Scales

This is the circle of fifths. The note at the very top is the key that you will generally be focusing on. in music, C is a good starting place because it has no sharps or flats, i.e. all the white notes on the piano keyboard. The dividing line indicates all of the notes in a C major scale. Everything to the right, including the notes that are touched by the line, are in a c major scale. To work your way through the scale, you would you would start from C and then play every other note, jumping across the circle when you hit the dividing line. Scales will always go in alphabetical order. the important information gained from using the circle of fifths is which notes need to be flattened or sharpened in a particular key.

There are various truths about the circle of fifths. You can easily find out relative major and minor pairs. If you draw a line from the top of the circle (C) to 3 'o' clock (A), you will have determined that C major is relative to A minor, likewise drawing a line from 12 'o' clock (C) to 9 'o' clock (Eb / D#) you will have worked out that C minor is relative to Eb major or D# minor. remember that a minor scale will always use the same notes as it's relative major. So for an A minor scale, you would play all the notes from a C major scale, but starting and finishing on A. See the article on the circle of fifths and modes.

For more interesting facts on the circle of fifths, see the reference material for this article: Studying the Circle of Fifths

You can also use The Guitar Master's Interactive Circle of Fifths to help find out what notes are in any scale. Simply click on the major name of the scale you are interested in. When it is at the top of the page, all notes to the right of the dividing line are notes in that major scale. And the various different modes can be achieved by playing the appropriate major scale!

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