Circle of 5ths
I have used this source information from the Internet and given it a twise of my own to get at the learning steps. Thanks Guitarsuite.com
Using the Circle of 5th's
The Circle of 5th's is a magic circle that pulls together an incredible amount of music theory into a tight, focused circle of knowledge.
It is a little difficult to understand at first and will confuse you if I try to explain it all to you up front. Therefore I have decided not to try to explain what the Circle of 5th' is, but rather I want to give you a series of steps that you can work through to achieve your own understanding. Understanding will come to you slowly and a step at a time if you follow the steps in order and proceed systematically.
Know that this circle is an amazing and powerful musical tool which synthesizes much music theory. It is used by many guitarists and other musicisans and it is well worth the journey you will have to take below, towards your own understanding of it. Enjoy!
Step 1: Get to know the Right Hand Side or Sharps side of the Circle of 5th's (♯ is the symbol for sharp)
With the Circle of 5th's diagram we are going to learn to understand, you will see that it is surrounded by different Key's i.e. the Key of C is at the top (12 oclock) the Key of G (at 1 oclock) and etc. Before we can start to learn about the circle let's try to understand what the word Key means.
What follows in the next few pargraphs, between the brackets is a little difficult for beginners to grasp at first read, so read it to get out of it what you can at this moment and also for your own interest. With each successive reading you will start to understand this section more and more.
(In music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways. A common use is to speak of music as being "in" a specific key, such as in the key of C or in the key of F-sharp. Although the concept of musical key can be a complicated subject when examined closely, broadly speaking the phrase in key of C means that C is music's harmonic center or tonic. Note that the letter-name "C" does not indicate a single specific pitch but rather all pitches with the letter name C (sometimes called a pitch class). The terms "major" and "minor" further imply the use of a major scale or a minor scale. Thus the phrase in the key of E major implies a piece of music harmonically centered on the note E and making use of a major scale whose first note, or tonic, is E. Although the term "key" is commonly used this way, actual music can rarely be described so simply.
The key also identifies the tonic triad, the chord, major or minor, which represents the final point of rest for a piece, or the focal point of a section. Although the key of a piece may be named in the title (e.g. Symphony in C), or inferred from the key signature, the establishment of key is brought about via functional harmony, a sequence of chords leading to one or more cadences. A key may be major or minor; music can be described as being in the Dorian mode, or Phrygian, et cetera, and is thus usually considered to be in a specific mode rather than a key. When a particular key is not being described in the English language, different key naming systems may be used.
Although many musicians confuse key with scale, a scale is an ordered set of notes typically used in a key, while the key is the center of gravity, established by particular chord progressions.)
Phew that was quite a mouthfull! Our objective below is to show you how to use the Circle of 5th's to simplify the above by showing you how to identify a specific key, identify the number of sharps and flats in a specific key and finally to identify what chords are major, minor and diminished in a specific key.
OK so let us begin:
In the diagram below realize that C, or Key of C (on the top of the circle is a perfect 5th i.e. 5 notes) from G. To count this you would count C, D, E, F, G. G (the next note down on the circle) is then a perfect 5th from C on the diagram below.
Here is the same thing i.e. the number of sharps per note (A, B, C etc.) in a list (note the order below is alphabetical, depending on the starting note while the order down the right side of the Circle of 5th's is not:
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Here are some more points to help with your understanding:
C = The starting note at the top of the Circle has 0 (ZERO) sharps
Each Key (as you go down the right hand side of the Circle, from the top) adds the 7th sharp (count 7 notes across from the start of each note letter in the alphabetical list above):
G adds F# i.e. GABCDEF#...
D keeps F#, and adds C# i.e. DEF#GABC#...
A keeps F#, and C#, adds G# i.e. ABC#DEF#G#
Each of these new sharps just happens to be a perfect 5th (5 notes along) from the first sharp, F# ... C# for the Key of D or C# ... G# for the Key of A etc.
To remember the order of these Key's down the right hand side of the Circle of 5th's, remember this quote or make up your own,
“Cool Guitarists Do Absolutely Everything Better ... freak”
And if you want to know which notes in each key are sharpened then learn this:
Father Christmas Gave Dad an Electric Blanket.
i.e. FCGDAEB
Starting from the G (at 1 oclock on the circle) next to C which is not sharpened of flattened (at 12 oclock) you will see that F (Father) is sharpened.
For D (2 oclock) and the next note down the right hand side, notes F & C are sharpened.
For A (3 oclock) and the next note down the right hand side, notes F & C & G are sharpened
and etc. down the right hand side of the circle of 5th's.
Cool don't you think!
Step 2: Get to know the Left Hand Side or Flats (♭) side of the Circle of 5th's (♭is the symbol for flat )
With reference to the above diagram this is what you need to understand:
It will be a little confusing at first to grasp. Don't worry. Just take time to think about it carefully.
The flats (at the bottom of the circle) are basically a continuation from the sharps side of the Circle i.e. going around the bottom of the Circle of 5th's and up the left hand side. G♭ (flat) and F# (sharp) are in fact the same notes, they just have different names. We switch to flats to make life simpler, because otherwise we'd have to get into double sharps unless we make the decision to start to use the flats, as we will have done.
So instead of adding more sharps (i.e. double, treble and more sharps) we simply take away flats. Let's look at G♭ (at the bottom of the circle) which is also F♯.
F# on the Circle of 5th's at the bottom ...has these notes sharpened = F#,G#,A#,BC#,D#,E# (we saw this in the previous diagram and discussion above).
Because F# on the Circle of 5ths diagram is also G♭
G♭ ...can also be written (or contains) these flats ... G♭,A♭BC♭,D♭,E♭,F
See, they're all the same notes.
Now go up a 5th from G♭ to D♭.
Now we take the flat 7th away, which would be “C♭.”
Next we move up another 5th from D♭ to A♭ and take away the 7th flat, which is G♭
Next we move up another 5th from A♭ to E♭ and take away the 7th flat, which is D♭
Next we move up another 5th from E♭ to B♭ and take away the 7th flat, which is A♭
Next we move up another 5th from B♭ to F and take away the 7th flat, which is E♭. That leaves us with B♭ only.
To see this is a list look below. This list moves from the bottom of the circle up the left hand side of the circle, up to our starting point of C at the top of the Circle of 5th's.
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To be honest with you we could analyze the hell out of this thing for hours and hours and would still just be digging deeper and deeper. What is better for us is rather to look at this a few more times in its entirety and then make a few observations. Ultimately we want the Circle of 5th to work for us and be an aid to us, rather than a complex chinese puzzle!
Here is another cheezy little quote to remember the order of the flats from the c counter-clockwise,
“Cool freakin' BEAD g”
Yeah, I know its a stoopid sentence, but it helps us to remember the order of the Keys. If you dont like it then feel free to make something else up.
And if you want to know which notes in each key are flattened then learn this:
Father Christmas Gave Dad an Electric Blanket. AND then reverse it!
i.e. BEADGCF
Starting from the F (at 11 oclock on the circle) next to C (at 12 oclock) and moving down the left hand side of the clock, you will see that B (Blanket) is flattened.
For B♭ (10 oclock) and the next note down the left hand side, notes B & E are flattened.
For A (9 oclock) and the next note down the left hand side, notes B & E & A are flattened etc.
Cool don't you think!
Step 3: Now lets use the more powerful circle of 5th's below to find the types of chords in the major and minor Keys, from the Circle of 5th's
Here is a more powerful Circle of 5th's with an inner wheel showing the minor Keys as well.
Lets take the G major Key as an example and then use the Circle above to try to discover the pattern of sharps, flats and major and minor chords and notes that belong to this Key.
In that Key we know that there is one sharps and the sharp is F#. We know that F# is the 7th note of the G Key because it is the letter that precedes the G note alphabetically.
And because it is the 7th note we also know that it must be a diminished note or chord.
Looking at the Circle of 5th's diagram above, the left and right hand of the Key you are in is always Major. i.e. Look at the outer wheel on each side of the Key you are working out and you will find (C & D) on either side of your starting note G.
After that, the next 3 chords are minor i.e. look at the notes on the left and fight of your starting Key note in the minor wheel (A & B) and then the one directly under you in the minor wheel which is E.
So for G = (G C D) (A E B) (F#) are what we get ... G C D are Major, A E B are minor , and F# is diminished. NB the Diminished Chord uses the symbol "o" or "dim"
Put them in order = G a b C D e F#
| G | a | b | C | D | e | F# |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major | minor | minor | Major | Major | minor | diminished |
| I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | VIIo |
Then you arrive at the 7th, which we know is always diminished.
There you go for the fist example!
Now lets try another:
Take the D Major Key as an example and then use the Circle of 5th's above to try to discover the pattern.
In that Key (of D Major) we know that there are 2 sharps and the sharps are F# and C#.
We know that C# is the 7th note of the D Major Key because it is the letter that precedes the D note alphabetically. And because it is the 7th note we also know that it must be a diminished note or chord.
Looking at the Circle of Fifths diagram above, the left and right hand of the Key you are in is always Major. i.e. Look at the outer wheel on each side of the Key you are working out and you will find (G & A) on either side of your starting note D. After that, the next 3 chords are minor i.e. look at the notes on the left and right of your starting Key note D and under you in the minor wheel and you will see (E & F) and the one directly under you in the minor wheel which is B.
So for D = (G D A) (E B F) (F#) are what we get ... A D G are Major, E B F are minor , and C# is diminished. NB the Diminished Chord uses the symbol "o" or "dim" Put them in order = D e f G A b C#
| D | e | f | G | A | b | C# |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major | minor | minor | Major | Major | minor | diminished |
| I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | VIIo |
Then you arrive at the 7th, which we know is always diminished. There you go for the second example. Each example you try will use exactly the same method and will allow you to derive the correct answer. Magic...?!
Now, just for fun, see if you can understand the three circles below. They use the same magic we discovered for ourselves above.
Note that the minor chords in the second diagram above are all on the same circle but the notes are f#, b and e which you will find on the inner "minor" wheel of the more powerful Circle of 5th's above. This is just another way of showing you the same result.
There are 7 notes in the major scale, each is made up of different intervals (#'s or 's).
You can build chords on each of these notes.
Some of them are minor chords, some of them are major chords, some of them are diminished chords.
OK Now lets try something really off the wall!
This next section "Chord Leading" and "Chord Substitution" directly below is included for fun only and to give you a feel for the art in music. If you start to get lost then dont worry too much as it is a little esoteric, and especially so for the beginner. But I recommend that you read through it lightly, to get a sence of the depth of the subject. A sense, as it where, for the art and magic that exists in music!
Chord Leading
What is chord leading?
It is the tendency for one chord to lead to the next chord. It is the feeling that it needs to move somewhere else.
How does chord leading?
Leading and resolution are directly tied to one another. As you know, the leading tone is the 7th tone of the scale, or the 7th chord of the progression. Well, honestly all notes have a tendency to go somewhere. Some have stronger tendencies than others. The strongest tendency to resolve is from the 7th tone. The reason this is because the 7th is one half step up from the tonic or root.
Which chords lead to which?
Well, that is the whole reason for this section. To find out what leads to what and to a lesser degree, why. It has to do with resolution, though. As we'll see.
Chord resolution
Resolution is the need to end up somewhere (on a particular note.) Chords resolve to othe chords more stable in the key. Sometimes you use a chord that isn't even in the key and they have to be resolved to a chord in key. You can have subtle and smooth resolution or strong resolution. Subtle resolution is generally done in half steps. This is why the 7th chord is called the leading tone, because it leads or resolves so naturally to the tonic. The 5th to the 1st would be considered a strong resolution.
What do all those names mean? (TONIC, SUPERTONIC, MEDIANT, etc...)?
Each one of these terms describes a relationship between it and the tonic or root of the chord / key. In our discussion of the chord flow chart below, I'll explain what each one means and does in detail.
Do I need to know what they mean?
No, not really. You can learn by ear what strength each of these chords does in relation to the tonic. That's the main reason I had you go through all of those chord cadences above, to gain that feel. Gaining this feel is one of the hardest things to do. But once you do doors will open for you musically.
Chord Leading Chart
The following chart DOES NOT explain what chords HAVE to do.
This is simply a chart explaining how strong of a relationship the chords in a key have with regards to leading and cadences.
Any of these chords CAN RESOLVE DIRECTLY TO THE TONIC. But the further away the chord lies from the tonic, the stronger it is on its own it is or less it needs to be resolved to the tonic.
The chord next to it is the most natural move to get it to the tonic.
Basically this chart shows the "PATH OF LEAST RESISTANCE".
TONIC CATEGORY: (RESTFUL CATEGORY)
The TONIC is home base. All roads lead to here.
The 3 can resolve anywhere. It is the closest related chord to the tonic so it stands alone best. That's why it's furthest away. It shares the 3-5 tones of the tonic. Very consonant. Often used to replace the tonic in a progression.
The 6 most naturally moves to the 2 chord. But, sometimes it shows up in the SUBDOMINANT CATEGORY. If this happens it progresses to the 5th chord nicely.
The 3 (mediant) and the 6 (submediant) are separated by a fifth.
The chords in this section share 2 common tones, none of which are the 4 tone. The four tone is restless so these all have a restful feel, as if they didn't need to go anywhere. So basically you can move to any chord from these without sounding bad.
SUBDOMINANT CATEGORY: (MODERATE MOVEMENT)
The 2 (supertonic) is a very common chord used. And it is usually followed by 5 (dominant) it shares 2 notes with this chord.
Also if you move up one 5th degree from the 5th or the root, you get to the second. So basically it's 2 5ths away from the root. This makes the ii - V - I one of the most common progressions.
The 4 (subdominant) is a feel good tone. If we resolve from the 4 to the tonic directly, we get a very smooth, calming effect. Often called the "Amen" cadence. Otherwise it most naturally resolves or leads to the dominant 5th. So the ii and the IV share the 4 tone, which causes them to have a similar restless feel.
DOMINANT CATEGORY:
These are the chords that most WANT to go to the tonic.
The dominant shares one note with the tonic and that is the 5 tone. Otherwise it contains the 7 leading tone. Both of these notes make this chord resolve very strongly to the tonic. Remember of course it can move to other chords as well but it makes a loud statement when it move to the tonic.
The leading chord contains no shared notes with the tonic. But it does have two notes that resolve 1/2 step up. Remember we said that 1/2 step resolutions are very smooth and logical. This is where the 7 chord (leading chord, not a 7th chord) comes in. It feels like it needs to go "home."
the Major Chord Progression Pattern:
Major I ... minor ii ... minor iii ... Major IV ... Major V ... minor vi ... diminished vii
| Chord / Key | A | B | C | D | E | F | G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | A | B | C | D | E | F | G |
| ii | b minor | c# minor | d minor | e minor | f# minor | g minor | a minor |
| iii | c# minor | d# minor | e minor | f# minor | g# minor | a minor | b minor |
| IV | D | E | F | G | A | B | C |
| V | E | F# | G | A | B | C | D |
| vi | f# minor | g# minor | a minor | b minor | c# minor | d minor | e minor |
| Vdim | G# dim | A# dim | B dim | C# dim | D# dim | E dim | F# dim |
Remember that chords can be substituted by other chords in their family so the I, IV and V may be substituted for other major family chords
Here are some more chord substitution guidelines
ii ... IVIII, vi ... I
VIIo ... V ii ... IV
III, vi ... I
VIIo ... V
General comments
Chord substitution overview:
Any chord in the dominant family can substitute for another dominant family chord
Any chord in the major family can substitute for another major family chord
Any minor can substitute for another minor family chord
Okay now the complicated explanation
Chord substitution can be a complex and wonderful thing. For the sake of simplicity, we are not going to cover extended chords here like 9ths, 6ths, add whatever and all of those. We're going to stick to our basic chords from the Circle of Fifths and the chord scale tones. This will provide us with a good idea of how most substitutions in progressions work and give us some ideas to try.
The idea that chords can substitute other chords depends and the fact that chords have feelings, tensions and directions. A chord with a different feeling, tension or direction than the one you want to change or substitute simply won't work. It will end up sounding out of place or awkward.
So what we need to do is find out what the chord is that shares the same tension, feeling or direction. But let's give it a shot to see if we can't figure it out.
First let's look at all the notes that chords share in a Key:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |
| C | |||||||
| dm | |||||||
| em | |||||||
| F | |||||||
| G | |||||||
| am | |||||||
| Bdim |
yeah...and?
1. Every note is shared between 3 chords. So what happens is that every chord shares 2 notes with at least 2 other chords.
2. So why can't we substitute any of these for any of the others?
Because it has to do with what tones these chords share. As we stated already in the chord there are notes that are restful, moderately restless and restless.
The chords that share restless tones Tonic Category I iii VI
The chords that share moderately restless tones are Subdominant Category ii IV
The chords that share restless tones are Dominant Category V VIIo
Chord Substitution Summary:
any chord from the tonic category can probably substitute for any other tonic chord.
any chord from the subdominant category can substitute for any other subdominant chord.
any dominant chord can substitute for any other dominant chord.
OK... Right... enough said on the subject!
Phew... If you are like me then this last bit above, if it was your first time through, will feel like it has become a little flakey inside your head. But please don't concern yourself too much about it. This is the beginning of the realm in music theory where "the is'm" becomes "the art!"
Lets get back to the Circle of 5th's and give you some concluding steps to follow to get this Magic Circle under your belt.
Step 4:
Guitar Theory: Summary of Circle of Fifth's
So now we know that the circle of fifths shows us:
the notes in every major scale and minor scale
how many flats and sharps are in each Key signature
what Keys share Key signatures
how to quickly see what relative minor belongs to what Key
what the dominant and subdominant of every chord / Key and consequently where each dominant resolves
the more we study it, the more we will understand the movement and relationship between chords and notes
So where do we start to learn all of this?!!
That's a ton of info!
Step 5:
1. Let's start with memorizing the notes and where they are on the Circle of Fifths:
Major Keys: Starting with C
Keys with sharps: Down the right side CGDAEBF
Keys with flats: Down the left CFB♭E♭A♭D♭G♭
Step 6:
2. Memorize how many sharps and flats each gets: 0123456 (respectively)
Step 7:
3. Memorize how to remember what's flat and sharp:
Start with F ...
Sharps = count the number of sharps your note has clockwise and those are your sharps. Include F as a sharp.
Flats = count the number of flats your note has counterclockwise from F and those are your flats. Don't count F as a flat.
Step 8:
4. Where the relative minor is in relation to the Major Keys and consequently what Keys share Key Signatures.
| C | G | D | A | E | B | F | Major Keys and Key Signiature |
| a | e | b | f# | c# | g# | d# | minor Keys that share Key sig. above |
Step 9:
5. Where the minor Keys lie in the Circle of Fifths:
Minor Keys: Starting with Am
Keys with sharps:
down the right side: Am ... Em ... Bm ... F#m ... C#m ... G#m ... D#m
Keys with flats:
down the left side: Am ... Dm ... Gm ... Cm ... Fm ... B♭m ... C♭m
Step 10:
6. Memorize how many sharps and flats each gets:
0 ... 1 ... 2 ... 3 ... 4 ... 5 ... 6 (respectively)
Step 11:
7. Where the tonic, supertonic, mediant, subdominant, dominant, submediant and leading tones occur on the
circle and what their flavor is for Minor Keys and Major Keys. (major / minor / diminished)
Step 12:
8. Realize where tonic category chords are, subdominant chords are and dominant chords are on the circle.
Clockwise: Every degree separated by 5ths
Counter clockwise: Every degree separated by 4ths
Outside: Major scale, major chords forms, major Keys, Key signatures
Inside: Minor scale, minor chord forms, relative minor to Key chords
Outside:
| 1 Left | 4th | subdominant | Major chord |
| 1 Right | 5th | dominant | Major chord |
| 2 Right | 2nd | supertonic | minor chord |
| 3 Right | 6th | submediant | relative minor chord |
| 4 Right | 3rd | mediant | minor chord |
| 5 Right | 7th | leading tone | diminished chord |
| across | b5th | tritone |
Inside:
| 1 Left | 4th | subdominant | minor chord |
| 1 Right | 5th | dominant | minor chord |
| 2 Right | 2nd | supertonic | diminished chord |
| 3 Right | 6th | submediant | Major chord |
| 4 Right | 3rd | mediant | minor chord |
| 5 Right | 7th | leading tone | Major chord |
| across | b5th | tritone |
This stuff can become quite confusing. Just read thorough it a few times and take it a step at a time!
The penny will drop. I promise you!
For each of the 13 steps above, take a careful look at it, then try to figure it out. If it is difficult to understand, walk away and come back to it. Remember that it takes time to get this and most people will battle to figure out the Circle of 5th's first off.
It'll take some time to really understand the theory and then be able to apply it. But this knowledge will benefit your guitar playing and is absolutely worth the effort you put in.
Click the folder above for your own copy of the Circle of 5th's. (
Zipped 
pdf ) Always remember; your guitar is your very best friend for life!
