The Famous Circle of Fifths

These Fifths Are Not Intoxicating

I've heard about the "Circle of Fifths" since I was a teenager, but it never made sense until recently. Another
mental block knocked over. This is a very simple tool for musicians of all stripes.
How Does the Circle of Fifths Work?
Look at the circle below, and we'll walk through the basics. Think of a clock, with C occupying the 12:00
position.
First, everything starts from C, since
C is the key in which there are NO
sharps or flats.
As we move clockwise from C,
each note is a fifth above the last.
So G is the fifth of the C scale, D is
the fifth of the G scale, and so on.
Starting with G, each new key going
clockwise has one more sharp note
in its major scale. You can test if
you wish, by building a major scale
on each note.
If we move counterclockwise from
C, each note is a fifth below the
prior note. And, just as with sharps,
each scale to the left of C adds a flat
note.
Note that at the 6:00 position, there
are two notes -- F# and Gb. These,
of course, are enharmonic notes --
they sound exactly the same and
are the same. Their names are
different only because they are
reached from different directions.
What Does the Circle of Fifths Do for a Musician?
First and foremost, it gives us a quick visual reference to a lot of information about all 12 keys in music. Again,
watch the clock.
circle of 5ths text http://www.folkblues.com/theory/circle_5ths_text.htm
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Again, C is the reference point, but
these concepts will apply for any
key.
We already know that G is the fifth
of the C scale. In the Circle of
Fifths, the fifth note of the scale
always sits just to the right of the
root note.
And we already know that F is a fifth
below C. But we should also note
that the fifth note below any root
note is the same named note as the
fourth note of the key scale.
OK, sounds confusing, so let's break
it down. Here's the C scale in two
octaves:
C D E F G A B C D E F G A
B C
Using the middle C as number 1,
count down (left) to the fifth note. Is
it F? Should be. Now count up
(right) to the F note. Is it the fourth
note? If not, you miscounted. So
now we know the following is true:
5th below Root = 4th above Root
Using the Circle of Fifths to Find Notes and Chords in a Scale.
We know that notes in a scale correspond to the chord scale in the same key, right? Here's how they line up:
C Major Scale C D E F G A B C
Scale Position (Degree) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 (octave)
Major Chord Scale C Dm Em F G Am
B
O
C
circle of 5ths text http://www.folkblues.com/theory/circle_5ths_text.htm
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Find the Notes in a Scale
Again, we are using the key of C as
a reference.
The Circle of Fifths can help us
name the notes in any major scale.
Here's how:
Look at the C scale in one octave:
C D E F G A B C
Note on the circle that the 1st note
is C. The 2 note, D, is two steps to
the right of C. The 3 note, E, is two
steps further to the right.
Now jump across the circle -- not
quite straight across -- to the 4 note,
which always sits to the left of the
root note in the Circle of Fifths.
Once you have the 4 note, the 5, 6,
and 7 notes are respectively two
steps to the right from each other.
That little pattern works with any
key. If you were to "spin" the
markers for the 1st through 7th
scale positions, so that another note
is the root note, the pattern works
the same way.
circle of 5ths text http://www.folkblues.com/theory/circle_5ths_text.htm
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Find the Chords in a Scale
Once more, the key of C is our
reference.
Because the Circle of Fifths can
help us name the notes in any major
scale, it can also show us the
chords in a major chord scale.
Here's how:
First, remember that any key has a
set of chords which go with it, just
as it has a major scale of single
notes. The major chord scale is
shown in the table above. Just like
the notes, the chords are identified
as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7. The 8
chord is always the octave of the 1
chord.
In the major chord scale, the 1, 4
and 5 chords are all major chords --
named the same chords as the 1, 4
and 5 notes. In the guitar world,
these are the "BIG THREE" chords
of every chord progression -- the
1-4-5 progressions. In C, you've
played it many times: C-F-G.
The 2, 3 and 6 chords in the chord
scale are all minors, and the 7 chord
is a diminished or diminished 7th
chord. Again, those are all named
after the note whose position they
represent.
The minor chords add color to what
we play, but one of them is the
primary minor chord -- often called
the relative minor -- based on the
6th note of the scale. In the case of
C, it's the A minor chord.
A trick in using the Circle of Fifths to
find the relative minor is to move 90
degrees right from the root chord.
So the relative minor of C is A
minor, since A is 90 degrees to the
right of C.
circle of 5ths text http://www.folkblues.com/theory/circle_5ths_text.htm
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