Circle Of Fifths

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The resolution of V to I has been cited as the strongest in Western harmony. This involves root movement upward by fourth, or, correspondingly, downward by fifth. You may also have noticed that the interval of a fifth is the key to the pattern formed by the key signatures of the various major keys. Here are the various key signatures again:

[EXAMPLE]

As you move from keys with fewer sharps to those with more, note that each key is a perfect fifth above the previous one. Also, each key has all the sharps of the previous key, plus one more, and each sharp that is added is a fifth higher than the previous one.

Conversely, as you move from keys with fewer flats to those with more, note that each key is a perfect fifth below the previous one, and that each flat added is a fifth below the previous one.

Notice also that if you start on any note and start going up by perfect fifths, you will eventually arrive at the same note seven octaves higher, and you will hit each of the other notes of the chromatic scale exactly once along the way. Besides the fourth, which is simply a fifth in the opposite direction, the only other interval with this property of outlining the chromatic scale is the minor second.

Because of these properties of perfect fifths, it can be useful to visualize them as points along a circle. This is called the circle of fifths. The points can be labelled with ascending fifths represented either clockwise or counterclockwise.

[EXAMPLE]

Keys that are close together on the circle are closely related harmonically - they have many notes in common. For example, D and G, which are adjacent on the circle, differ only in that G has a C whereas D has a C#. Conversely, keys that are far apart on the circle are more distantly related harmonically. For example, C and Gb, which are far apart on the circle, have only the note F in common.

When practicing an exercise in all twelve keys, the circle of fifths can be a useful device to ensure that you cover all the keys - simply go through the keys in the order suggested by the circle. While you can also use the chromatic scale to suggest an order for the keys, the circle of fifths has the additional advantage of keeping related keys together.

There is nothing otherwise special about this representation of the relationship between notes a fifth apart. It is just a convenient mnemonic device that is commonly used by both classical and jazz musicians.

Copyright 2000 Outside Shore Music
Authored by Marc Sabatella

Circle Of Fifths