Circle of Fifths

What the circle of fifths is

The circle of fifths arranges all twelve major keys so that each one is a perfect fifth above the one before it, going clockwise: C, G, D, A and so on, back round to C. Going anticlockwise, each step is a fourth instead. Every step clockwise adds one sharp to the key signature, and every step anticlockwise adds one flat, which is why the circle doubles as a key-signature chart. Each major key’s relative minor — the minor key with the same notes and the same signature — sits just inside it.

How to use it

• Tap a key on the outer ring for a major key, or on the inner ring for a minor key.
• The panel shows the key’s signature on a staff, the notes of its scale and its seven chords, each with its Roman numeral. Tap any note or chord to hear it, or play a short cadence to hear the key settle.
• Under them are borrowed chords: chords from the parallel key (same tonic, other mode) that songs in this key use all the time. In a minor key that includes the major V — B minor’s cadence uses F♯ major, not F♯m, because its raised seventh (A♯) pulls up to the tonic.
• The dashed outline on the wheel is the key’s diatonic window: the key, its two neighbours and their relative minors. Those six wedges are six of the key’s seven chords; the seventh, a diminished chord, is listed in the panel.
• Use the arrow keys to walk round the circle a fifth at a time, ↑/↓ or R to jump to the relative key, and P for the parallel key (same tonic, other mode).
• When you’ve found your key, send it to Chord Progressions to build and hear a progression in it, or open its tonic chord in the Chord Chart.

Using it to write songs

• The chords inside the window all belong to the key, so any combination of them will sound “in key”.
• Neighbouring keys share all but one note, which makes them the smoothest places to modulate to — a step clockwise brightens, a step anticlockwise relaxes.
• Switching to the relative minor keeps every note but changes where home feels, for an easy change of mood.

FAQ