Key Signatures. Circle of Fifths.

Music key signatures are the playground used by chords and scales. They provide the structure for moving around the harmonic system with chords and scales thus giving definition to the movement of music. The key signature defines and places sharp and flat notes with in a system where you can build scales as well as chords using the fundamental mathematics of music. Without the foundation of key signatures you are not really reading music, but reading the notation of music one note by another note. This is like reading a book letter by letter. Having a foundation of keys and using scales and chords associated with any key allows you to form words and sentences in music.

The most often used tool to understand key signature relationships is the circle of fifths. This circle is the tool used to walk through the process of creating the keys. This fundamental knowledge of keys is necessary in order to work with different chords and scales. Changing a key signature can and will change the circle of fifths. The same song played in one key will have a sound quaility different in another.

The starting point to learn key signatures is with the key of Cmajor and a minor, since they have the same key signature. It has no flats or sharps in the scale. The next most closely relates keys to C major (a minor) would be G major (e minor), with one sharp, and F major (d minor), with only one flat. The keys are more distant from C major (a minor), with six sharps or six flats, are on the opposite side of the circle.

The circle of fifths gets its name from the fact that as you go from one section of the circle to the next, you are going up or down by an interval of a perfect fifth. If you go up a perfect fifth, you get the key that has one more flat or one less sharp.

If you don’t know the order of the sharp and flats, you can also use the circle of fifth to find these. The first sharp in key is always f sharp; the second sharp in a key signature is always (a perfect fifth way) c sharp; the third is always g sharp, and so on, all the way to b sharp. The first flat in key signature is always b flat (the same as the last sharp); the second is always e flat, and so on, all the way to f flat.

Vocabulary

key – ключ; тональність

signature – знак

circle of fifths – квінтове коло

perfect fifth – чиста квінта

sharp – діез

flat – бемоль

Task 2. Choose the correct answer :

1. The key signature defines and places:

a. long and short notes

b. low and loud notes

c. sharp and flat notes

d. legato and staccato notes

2. Without the foundation of key signatures you are not really reading music, but:

a. comprehending true plan of composition

b. learning the circle of fifths

c. reading the notation of music one note by another note

d. having a good time

3. The most often used tool to understand key signature relationships is:

a. harmony

b. scale

c. tempo

d. the circle of fifths

4. Changing a key signature can and will change:

a. triads

b. the circle of fifths

c. melody

d. rhythm

5. The starting point to learn key signatures is with:

a. the key of Amajor

b. the key of emimor

c. the key of B flatmajor

d. the key of Cmajor and a minor

Task 3. Put the questions to the underlined words:

a. Music key signaturesprovidethe structure for moving around the harmonic system with chords and scales thus giving definition to the movement of music.

b. The key signaturedefines and placessharp and flat notes with in a system where you can build scales as well as chords using the fundamental mathematics of music.

Task 4. Answer the following questions:

1. What are music key signatures?

2. What are you doing without the foundation of key signatures?

3. What allows you to form words and sentences in music?

4. What is the starting point to learn key signatures?

5. Where does the circle of fifths gets its name from?

6. What is the first flat in key signature?

Task 5. Retell the text.