Circle of 5ths!

Circle of 5ths

The circle of 5ths, also known as the cycle of fifths is the
key to understanding harmony and modulation.

Knowing the cycle of fifths will help you understand how to move from one chord to another i.e. it will help you get better at chord progressions, whatever be your instrument.

In fact, it is a very important aspect of understanding Western music.

All the 12 Keys in the Cycle

Cycle of Fifths - If you look at the diagram above, you will observe that if you go clockwise, the keys get progressively sharper.

Each new key is a Fifth away from the previous key. So if you start with C (no sharps/flats), the next key is G (one sharp), then D (two sharps), and so on.

Cycle of Fourths - If you go anti-clockwise, the keys get progressively flatter. Again starting from C, the next key is F (one flat), then Bb (two flats), and so on.

This sequence is also known as the cycle of fourths since each new key is a Fourth away from the previous key.

Perfect Symmetry
Useful for Harmonizing in Different Keys

Another aspect of the circle of fifths is its perfect symmetry. If you are playing a song in any key, the most common chords that you will use for harmonizing are I, IV and V.

So, if you are playing in the C key, you will need the F and G chords, in addition to the C chord. If you look at the circle, you will see that F and G are situated one step anticlockwise and one step clockwise from C in the cycle i.e. the C chord is in the middle of the two.

This is true for each and every key. So if you have to play a song in a different key, just refer to this chart and you will know the IV and V chords for that key. They have to be adjacent to chord-I.

Final Thoughts

This was just an introduction to the cycle of fifths but I am sure you would have seen the importance of it.

Time spent on studying this will help you improve your chord progressions skills and will be of immense help as a tool for transposition and modulation.