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The Interval-Singing Project is a database of popular song and theme titles, collected as an aid to teaching intervals.
The songs are well-known within their category and genre and feature a specific musical interval as the first interval in the melody.
Instead of a student having to learn the sound of each interval from scratch, they will be able to tap into their own knowledge by simply remembering the start of a well-known song within their lived experience and musical interests.
I have set up a survey to collect suggestions. Please share the link below with your music teacher or fellow musicians so we can build a rich resource.
The resulting database will be available free of charge to anyone by subscribing to my blog and will be updated regularly. A selection of results will be publicly posted here.
Being able to recognise and name intervals is one of the cornerstones of both music theory and musicianship and I hope that the resulting database will become a handy, free resource for anyone who learns or teaches music.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
Learning To Sing Intervals
Interval names are based on scale notes.
If we can sing, hum or imagine the sound of a scale, we can teach ourselves the character and name of various intervals by ear. We can count how many scale notes there are from the lower note of the interval to the higher note.
The easiest scale to sing, at least in Western culture, is the major scale. If you can’t sing a major scale straight away, please have a look at 17. Listen And Sing: How To Sing The Major Scale before reading on.
Major scale intervals
In 16. Intervals 1: Major, Minor And Perfect Intervals we saw that intervals are always counted from the lower note to the higher note, regardless of the order in which they’re played. The lower note of the interval becomes the root note of a major scale. We count scale notes to find the higher note and name the interval.
Counting up from the root note, the major scale contains the major 2nd, major 3rd, perfect 4th, perfect 5th, major 6th, major 7th, and, of course, the octave.
Treat the root note of the scale as the lower note of an interval.
Now sing from the root note to the 2nd note. This is a major 2nd.
To sing a major 3rd, sing the first 3 scale notes in a row but sing the 2nd note quieter or shorter than the first and third notes (see below). After a few times, leave the second note out altogether.
Repeat this exercise from the root note to each of the other notes in the scale.
Tip: the most useful intervals to become really good at are the major 3rd, perfect 5th and the octave. They are the notes of a major triad, a sound which will feel familiar to the ear and provide a shortcut for larger intervals (more on triads in Part 2 of my course).
Try These…
Below are the intervals of C major. Most voices can find a comfortable way to sing a C in the lower part of their range. The note number/scale degree is indicated below the notes.
In the first line, sing along to the first bar, then sing the same notes again in the second bar while you hear the interval played together. Feel your voice hit the lower and higher notes of the interval at the start and end of the bar.
In the second line the in-between scale notes are left out. Again, keep singing the first bar while you hear the interval played together in the second bar.
Practice each interval long enough until you don’t need to listen to the example while you sing.
Major 2nd
Major 3rd
Perfect 4th
Perfect 5th
Major 6th
Major 7th
Octave (perfect 8th)
Once you build a little confidence, choose a slightly lower or higher note for your intervals.
The more you do exercises like these, the easier it will be to recognise the interval between two notes, whether you hear them as a melodic interval (consecutive notes) or as a harmonic interval (both notes sounding together).
How To Sing An Interval Above A Note
This is just like how we learnt the intervals starting on C
Choose a major or perfect interval by name, such as a perfect 4th.
Play a note towards the bottom of your range.
Sing that note, then sing a note that’s the chosen interval above it
If you need to, you can quietly sing the in-between scale notes like in the first exercise.
How To Name An Interval You’re Hearing
You can use the same method to name an interval that you hear.
First, identify both notes of the interval by singing them. They are a little harder to pick when played together.
Sing the lower note, then sing the notes of the major scale until you hear your note match the higher note, counting notes as you sing (the starting note counts as the first note).
2 notes is a 2nd, 3 notes is a 3rd, etc. The 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th are major intervals, the 4th and 5th are perfect. (Technically the octave is also perfect, we just don’t need to say so. An octave is just called an octave.)
Try These…
Below are audio files of a few harmonic intervals. Remember to sing both notes of each interval before singing (or thinking) scale notes. To make it a little easier, the two notes are quickly played as a melodic interval before hearing the two notes together.
Name each interval using the steps outlined above:
Answers at the bottom of this post.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date wth new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
Some parts, especially rhythmic parts but also short phrases in melodic parts such as riffs, have a bar which is repeated a number of times in succession. Rather than having to write the same notes out many times we can just write the notes for the first time, then use the musical equivalent of a ditto, the repeat bar.
As rhythms are often 2 or 4 bars long there is also a 2-bar repeat and a 4-bar repeat.
The first time, the content (of 1, 2 or 4 bars) is written in full. The bar repeat symbol is written in the bars or groups of bars over which the content should be repeated.
The number of bars of the bar repeat is reflected in the number of bars the symbol covers and the number of slashes in the symbol. As a courtesy, the number 2 or 4 is written above the 2- and 4-bar repeat bar symbol.
Optionally, every few repeats, a tally of the number of times the content is played so far (including the original written-out bar(s)) is indicated above the repeat bar. This helps keep track of which repeat bar we’re up to.
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A coda is a final section, allowing further complexity in the format of a piece. After any number of other navigational signs, the music can finish on a more conclusive section than the other section endings. On repeating the piece after a D.C or D.S. the music can jump from a point labelled “To Coda” to the coda.
The stave is broken between the end of the main piece and the coda, indicating that it can only be reached from a To Coda.
Da Capo al Coda, D.C. al Coda
(go back to the beginning and repeat until the words “To Coda”, then skip to the word “Coda”)
The piece is played again from the beginning up to the words To Coda the jumps to the Coda (final section).
Segno (sign)
The segno provides another point in the music to repeat from. In a popular music song, for example, the first section is often an introduction, only intended to play at the very start. Other sections such as verses and choruses may repeat several times but without going back to the introduction. The start of the various verse and chorus sections could be marked with the segno so that the introduction isn’t repeated.
Dal Segno or D.S.
(go back to the sign and repeat from there)
If we want to go back to a section after the beginning of the piece rather than all the way back to the beginning, we can use the segno (“sign”). On reaching the term dal segno, the piece is repeated from the sign.
The abbreviation D.S. is often used instead of the full wording.
Dal Segno al Fine, D.S. al Fine
(go back to the sign and repeat from there till the word “Fine”, meaning ”end”)
Just like Da Capo al Fine but instead of repeating from the beginning of the piece till the word ”Fine”, we repeat from the sign till the word “Fine”.
D.S. al Fine
Dal Segno al Coda, D.S. al Coda
(go back to the Segno and repeat until the words “To Coda”, then skip to the Coda)
This is like Da Capo al Coda but instead of going back to the beginning of the piece, we repeat from the Segno until the words “To Coda” then jump to the coda.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date wth new posts, please subscribe.
A great deal of music is made up of sections which are played more than once. Special barlines and other symbols can be used to indicate such sections, substantially reducing the number of pages required to notate a piece.
In a score, navigation text and signs are written above the stave for each part in Bold.
Navigation works a bit like a model railway, with signals directing the player through and around various sections of the music.
Although originally devised for music notation, navigation markings can equally be used on text-based notation such as chord charts or abc notation.
Navigation markings
Section End
A section end is a double barline of the usual thickness. As the name suggests, it indicates the end of a section of the music. When you see a section end, keep playing unless other symbols indicate a pause in the timing.
Final Bar/Double Bar
The final bar is a double barline with an extra-thick second line. It indicates the end of the whole piece unless other symbols indicate otherwise.
End Repeat Sign
An end repeat looks like a final bar but with two dots to the left.
If no begin repeat has been passed, go back to the beginning of the piece and play it again, else go back to the nearest begin repeat sign and play again.
Once you reach the end repeat a second time, continue onwards.
Begin Repeat Sign
A begin repeat sign is the reverse of an end repeat. When you encounter one, keep playing: it has no meaning until you reach an end repeat sign. Think of a begin and end repeat as a pair of brackets enclosing a section which is to be played twice.
Play X Times
The words “play x times” above an end repeat indicate that the repeated section is played the total number of times indicated here by “x”, such as “play 3 times”.
1st And 2nd Time Bars
In a repeated section, first and second time bars allow different endings for leading back to the start after the first time through and playing on after the repeat. First and second time bars can be made up of more than one bar, as indicated by the length of the line.
Da Capo or D.C.
As well as repeated sections, the whole piece may be repeated, including any internal repeats. A repeat sign at the end is confusing because someone reading the music would be looking for a matching start repeat that doesn’t exist. Such larger scale repeats are indicated with the Italian words “da Capo” (“from the head”), to play again from the beginning.
The abbreviation D.C. is often used instead of the full wording.
Note: In some genres, internal repeated sections are not repeated the second time.
The diagram below shows how the navigational symbols are interpreted. To keep the example tiny, each section is represented by only 2 bars (at a very fast tempo!)
Common navigation markings
All navigation markings must be written over a double bar. If there is no repeat sign or final double bar, a section end (thin double bar) must be used.
Da Capo al Fine, D.C. al Fine
(go back to the beginning and repeat until the word “Fine”)
The piece is played again from the beginning, stopping the second time on the word “Fine” (“end”).
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date wth new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
Interval names are equally important. Among other uses, interval names form the basis for understanding chords and chord names.
Melodic and Harmonic Intervals
An interval is the pitch difference between two notes. Intervals occur both as consecutive notes in a melody, or as two notes sounding together such as a melody and harmony. When more than two notes sound together, such as in a chord, there are multiple intervals between the various notes.
Not surprisingly, the interval between consecutive notes is called a melodic interval and that between two notes sounding together is called a harmonic interval (some call it a vertical interval). We count and name intervals the same way in both cases, from the lower note to the higher note.
Intervals are counted from the lower note to the higher note, even if the higher note comes before the lower note in a melody.
Singing A Scale
Trained musicians, including musicians who play by ear, are able to count the intervals from one note to the next in a melody or chord by mentally (or physically) singing the notes of a scale, starting on the lower note and finishing on the higher note. This is actually a very useful skill worth developing. Such general musical skills are called musicianship and form a bridge between theory and practice.
In the coming lessons I intend to look a a few basic musicianship skills including how to count intervals by singing.
Naming Intervals By Counting Scale Notes
So far we have described the interval between two notes in two ways; by counting letters and by counting semitones. Neither are enough.
Counting letters doesn’t distinguish between sharps, flats or naturals so the number of semitones can vary: A-C and A-C# are not the same interval.
Counting semitones doesn’t guarantee that we end up with the right note names: A-C# and A-Db have the same number of semitones but use different note names.
As we’ll continue to find out, note names are important. The choice of note name reflects how that note functions in a given context. We want a way of measuring the size of an interval that also tracks the note names; a method that counts both semitones and letters. Scale notes do just that.
To count in scale notes we use a major and a minor scale whose root note is the same as the lower note of the interval; the parallel major and minor. If the lower note is A, we use A major and A minor.
However, instead of using the aeolian mode, the natural minor, we use the phrygian mode. The phrygian mode has four notes that differ from the major instead of three; the 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th notes, as opposed to just the 3rd, 6th and 7th notes.
Think of the phrygian mode as being more minor than minor, or the super-minor…
Even though we’re now using the phrygian mode we still call it “minor” for interval names. I will mark this minor with an asterisk * as a reminder that it’s the phrygian rather than aeolian mode.
The Interval Ruler
We can hone this down a little: the 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th notes of the minor are 1 semitone lower than the major, so as a shortcut we can just write out the major scale and flatten the 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th note to find the minor intervals. I call this an interval ruler.
Remember that to flatten a note we lower it by 1 semitone without changing its letter. A sharp becomes a natural, a natural becomes a flat and a flat becomes a double flat.
Here is the interval ruler for an interval whose lower note is A. The degree numbers are written below. Each scale degree shows the number of semitones from the root note to that note.
Major, Minor and Perfect Intervals
There are three main types of interval names; major, minor and perfect, based upon the following conditions:
If the upper note of the interval is only in the major scale on the lower note, the interval is major.
If the upper note of the interval is only in the *minor scale on the lower note, the interval is minor.
If the upper note of the interval is common to both scales, the interval is perfect.
We call this part the quality of the interval.
Perfect-type intervals are marked in green and major/minor type intervals in blue.
The other part of the interval name is the degree of the interval; the number of scale notes or letters including the first and last.
For instance, in the interval A to C#, the upper note, C#, is the 3rd note of the major scale on A, the lower note. A-C# is a major 3rd.
A to C# is a major 3rd
How To Name An Interval:
Write the lower note of the interval in the ruler as the root note and add the notes of the major key.
Now flatten the 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th note for the *minor as indicated by the red arrows.
Next, look in the ruler for the upper note of the interval.
The interval name is made up of the quality; major, minor or both (=perfect), and the degree.
In the above example, A-C# is a major 3rd (= 4 semitones).
Similarly, A-C is a minor 3rd (= 3 semitones), A-D is a perfect 4th (= 5 semitones), etc.
1st, 4th, 5th and 8th are perfect-type intervals.
2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th are major/minor type intervals, depending on which scale the upper note is in.
As well as the octave, we’ve already met three intervals:
Minor 3rd (3 semitones to the 3rd letter) – the interval between the root notes of relative major and minor keys.
Perfect 5th (7 semitones to the 5th letter) – the interval from any key to the next key in the cycle of 5ths.
Perfect 4th (5 semitones to the 4th letter)- the interval from any key to the previous key in the cycle of 5ths.
An Interval Name Is Based On The Lower Note
All the examples so far assume that A is the lower note of the interval, hence we’ve used A scales for our ruler. If we want to measure an interval with a different lower note we want the interval ruler to start on that note. For example, to name the interval from G to E we would need G scales and to name the interval from Bb to Db we would need Bb scales.
G-E
E is the 6th note of G major, so G – E is a major 6th (9 semitones).
Bb-Db
Db is the 3rd note of Bb minor, so Bb – Db is a minor 3rd (3 semitones).
By now you’ll see why I was so keen on learning key signatures of major scales: knowing them makes this process a lot quicker than having to work it out on the fly! Every time we look at the interval between a pair of notes with a different lower note, we need to use a different scale for our interval ruler.
At least by using the interval ruler we only need to learn the major scale, as we can flatten the 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th to find the *minor (phrygian mode).
Try These…
Name the following major, minor and perfect intervals:
F-Bb
F-E
F-Db
G-B
G-D
G-F
Bb-G
Answers at the end of this post.
Interval Names In Reverse: finding the upper note
So far we’ve named an existing interval. Now let’s recreate an interval from its name. We’ll pick a note to be our lower note and name the higher note based on the interval name.
For instance, let’s find the note that’s a minor 6th above E.
First we’ll create our interval ruler on E. We’ll start with E major. The key signature of E major is 4 sharps: F#, C#, G# and D#, so the scale of E major is E, F#, G#, A, B, C#, D#, E.
Now we’ll write E *minor below it by flattening the 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th notes.
Next we look for the interval, in this case a minor 6th. Minor 6th means the upper note is the 6th note of the minor built on the lower note, so we look for the 6th note of E *minor on our interval ruler.
Minor 6th above E
An interval name means:
The higher note of the interval is the …th (degree name) note of the … (major or minor or both) scale built on the lower note.
Saying it in this way may help to remember how interval names work.
Try These…
Find the upper note in the following major, minor or perfect intervals:
a minor 3rd above C
a major 6th above C
a minor 2nd above E
a perfect 4th above E
a minor 7th above E
a major 2nd above Eb
a major 7th above Eb
Interval Names As Scale Degrees
The different notes of a scale are called degrees. So far I have used the note’s position in the scale to indicate the degree, such as 3rd or 5th. We can refine this by calling the third note of a major scale the major 3rd, the 5th note of either scale the perfect 5th and so on.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date wth new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
The relationship between two keys is simply how many notes they have in common: the more notes in common, the closer their relationship.
Why do we care? Because this is not just true on paper. Theory reflects reality. Closely related keys actually sound close, musically. They sound compatible.
In the preceding lessons we have already seen two types of key relationships; the cycle of fifths and relative major and minor. Here’s a quick review:
The Cycle Of Fifths
The cycle of fifths is a list of the keys in the order of their key signatures, from every note being a flat through to every note being a sharp. In this list, any two adjacent keys have all but one note in common.
The effect of this close relationship is that the music can comfortably and cohesively shift from one key to the other and back.
This is most easily demonstrated with chords. We’ll look at chords in a later post, but for now we can say that a (basic) chord represents a key. Chord names mimic key names, just in a shortened form. A note name by itself implies a major chord/key. If it’s followed by ”m”, it’s a minor chord.
Adjacent keys in the cycle of 5ths can be visited in any order. Here’s a short example in C major with a simple melody and chords. As usual in my posts, the examples are purely for illustration, so they don’t sound as exciting as real compositions…
Here’s an example of a simple melody in C major visiting adjacent keys, as represented here by chords.
A large proportion of music in Western culture in most genres, whether fast or slow, rhythmic or free, accompanied or solo, is based on visiting closely related keys.
To find the next key in the cycle of 5ths, go up to the 5th letter in the key to find the root note, then sharpen the 7th note of the scale (add a sharp or lose a flat).
To find the previous key in the cycle of 5ths, go down to the 5th letter in the key (or up to the 4th letter) to find the root note, then flatten the 4th note of the scale (add a flat or lose a sharp).
You can also use the cycle of 5ths as a list to look up the root note of a key and its latest sharp or flat, or even the complete key signature. An example of this for major scales can be found in 12. Major Keys And The Cycle/Circle Of Fifths. The cycle of 5th for major and minor keys, with key signatures, is shown in The Cycle (circle) of Fifths.
Relative Major And Minor
Next we looked at another close relationship between keys, one where two keys have every note in common: relative major and minor. Having all notes in common, the difference is in which one is the root note. Of course, changing the root note changes the mode, hence the term relative major and minor.
Major and minor have different characters – different tonalities. Moving between one and the other feels a bit like going to an unfamiliar corner of a familiar room; like viewing the scene from a different angle.
Here is a simple melody in C major visiting the relative minor.
To find the relative minor of a major key, go up to the 3rd letter in the key and keep the same key signature (play the same notes starting on the 3rd note).
To find the relative major of a minor key, go down to the 3rd letter in the key and keep the same key signature.
There is a third type of key relationship which we haven’t yet visited; parallel major and minor. This means a major and a minor on the same root note.
The easiest way to see their relationship is by writing one on top of the other, literally parallel.
Here’s an example on C:
In the above graphic we can see that the parallel minor has three notes that are flattened compared to the parallel major, the 3rd, 6th and 7th notes.
Key signature wise, the parallel minor is 3 keys behind the parallel major (anticlockwise).
Parallel major and minor have only four of their seven notes in common so, as far as the cycle of 5ths goes, they’re not that closely related. However, because they share the same root note, their relationship feels closer than that.
Here is a simple melody in C major visiting the parallel minor.
Another Shortcut
Here’s another way to remember a few keys you don’t know…
Major to Parallel Minor
If you know the key signature of a major key then the minor on the same root note, the parallel minor, is 3 keys backward (anticlockwise) in the cycle of 5ths.
If you know the notes in the scale rather than the key signature, such as when playing by ear, flatten the 3rd, 6th and 7th notes. You’ll get the same result.
Minor to Parallel Major
If you know the key signature of a minor key, the major on the same root note is 3 keys forward (clockwise) in the cycle of 5ths.
If you know the notes in the scale, sharpen the 3rd, 6th and 7th notes.
Examples
Major to parallel minor
We know C major has no sharps or flats, so C minor has 3 flats (Bb, Eb, Ab)
Minor to parallel major
We know A minor has no sharps or flats, so A major has 3 sharps (F#, C#, G#)
Nothing In Common Is Still Something
On the far side of the relationship spectrum, two keys can have no notes in common. This is achieved by sharpening or flattening the root note and thus, every note. Musically, it’s a complete reset. Moving between two such unrelated keys can sound anywhere from refreshing to dramatic or mysterious.
In the case of C major, 0 sharps/flats, sharpening everything gives us C# major, 7 sharps.
Similarly, flattening everything gives us Cb major, 7 flats.
To sharpen everything, go forward (clockwise) 7 keys in the cycle of 5ths. All flats become naturals and all naturals become sharps. Every note is played 1 semitone higher than before.
To flatten everything, go backward (anticlockwise) 7 keys in the cycle of 5ths. All sharps become naturals and all naturals become flats. Every note is played 1 semitone lower than before.
Flattening D major (2 sharps) results in Db major (5 flats). All naturals become flats and all sharps become naturals.
Note: there is a practical limit to how many sharps or flats we can have. If there are more than 7, one or more notes in the scale will have a double sharp or double flat. These exist but are only used when necessary, usually as an accidental rather than as part of a key signature. For keys, it’s generally easier to respell (rename) the root note and avoid the issue.
If there are more than 7 sharps or flats, respell the root note. The key signature will go from lots of sharps to a few flats or from lots of flats to a few sharps.
For example, you probably remember by now that G major has 1 sharp, F#.
If we sharpen everything we get G# major, with 8 sharps. All the naturals are sharps and F is a double sharp.
However, G# is the same pitch as Ab. Ab major only has 4 flats so it’s much easier to read and doesn’t require a double anything.
Knowing G major does help you find Gb major though. By flattening everything we go from 1 sharp to 6 flats, no doubles there.
From The Known To The Unknown
Use your knowledge of key relationships to help learn the key signatures of more keys. Start with a couple of common or easy to remember keys and with a little thought, you’ll soon know most of them. At the same time you’ll become more familiar with the idea of keys being related to each other.
For instance, just by knowing C major (0 sharps/flats) you can quickly find its parallel minor, C minor (3 flats), 3 keys back in the cycle of fifths or flatten the 3rd, 6th and 7th notes.
You can also find C# major and Cb major by sharpening or flattening everything, as we’ve seen above.
From C minor you can find C# minor (sharpen everything: 3 flats becomes 4 sharps). Or you can find C# minor from C# major using parallel major to minor.
From C minor you can also find Eb major (still 3 flats), using relative minor to major (count up to the 3rd note in the key).
Similarly, from C# minor, using relative minor to major, you can find E major (4 sharps). Or you can find E major by sharpening everything in Eb Major (3 flats becomes 4 sharps).
We know A minor already, but if you forgot, you could find that from C major using relative major to minor (count down to the 3rd scale note, keeping the same key signature, 0 sharps/flats).
That’s 8 keys and key signatures just from remembering one key!
And I could keep going: From E major you can find E minor and so on… Not to mention using the cycle of 5ths to find the next key (add 1 sharp or lose 1 flat) or previous key (add 1 flat or lose 1 sharp), and then their relative minors or majors, etc.
Try this yourself with another common key like A minor or G major.
Try These…
Test your ability to think in key relationships! Name the following keys and list either their notes as a scale or their key signatures:
A major has 3 sharps; F#, C#, G#. What is the next key in the cycle of fifths after A major?
Bb major has 2 flats; Bb, Eb. What is the previous key in the cycle of fifths before Bb major?
D major has 2 sharps; F#, C#. What is the relative minor of D major?
D minor has 1 flat; Bb. What is the relative major of D minor?
E major has 4 sharps; F#, C#, G#, D#. What is the parallel minor of E major?
F# minor has 3 sharps; F#, C#, G#. What is the parallel major of F# minor?
You worked out the key of D minor. Now sharpen it.
G major gas 1 sharp; F#. What is the key of Gb major?
Answers at the end of this post.
Key Relationships Are Real
Being able to work out key signatures by using the various key relationships not only helps you with the odd unfamiliar key but it also reinforces your understanding of these relationships. As mentioned earlier, key relationships aren’t just musical arithmetic, they are real: when listening, you can hear the connection between related keys.
Try This…
For any key, the next and previous keys in the cycle of 5ths and their relative minors or majors are the most closely related. Choose a key whose key signature (or scale notes) you remember and work out these closely related keys.
If you play chords, try changing between the chords of these keys. If you play melodies, play their scales or triads. Either way, you’ll find that you can mix them up into any order and they will feel like they belong together.
(Sib simple chord sequence as chords, then triads, then as rapid scales)
You can also use closely related keys to work your way progressively to a distant key without really noticing, such as in the classic chord progression of Jimmy Hendrix’s Hey Joe, a cascading sequence of forward steps in the cycle of 5ths. In that song, the surprise comes when the sequence resets at the start of the next line: only then can you hear how far from home you ended up…
(Sib Hey Joe progression in scales and chords with repeat)
Note: we’ll investigate chords and triads later in this course.
If you play by ear, you can use any of the methods above to find how to play the scales of related keys. All you need to remember is the name of the key.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date wth new posts, please subscribe.
Many musicians are put off learning music theory, either because they believe it will destroy their creativity or because they’ve had some traditional music theory lessons and found them confusing or irrelevant.
My goal is to empower musicians with the tools to control their musical environment: to introduce enough basic musical language to be able to discuss and understand the basic principles which underpin the vast majority of Western music, and how to use these principles effectively in playing and creating music, regardless of genre or style.
Who is this course for?
This is a course for people with little or no music theory background, both complete beginners in music and players who have learned by ear. It is also suitable for students who have studied traditional music theory courses and want to gain some more understanding.
Creative musicians especially will benefit from the insights of this course, as the principles behind music theory are the tools for controlling the direction and scope of your musical creation, be it composition or improvisation.
This course is primarily written for adults and older children.
What grade does this course teach?
I haven’t exactly followed the grade system of any country or school. The information is the same but sometimes it is presented in a different order, making it hard to draw a comparison.
Not every single musical term covered in the grade system is covered here. In traditional theory courses there is an abundence of terminology, some of which is quite cumbersome and potentially distracts from understanding. I do, however, use all the key musical terms taught in such courses.
The focus of my course is to demonstrate how the concepts and underlying principles of music theory affect the music we play and create, and to help to understand these principles, rather than teaching them as a set of rules. Nonetheless, the information itself is the same as in any traditional music theory course.
Is this a course or a reference?
This is a structured course in basic music theory. Beginners should start with the first lesson and do the lessons in their numerical sequence.
Each lesson is clearly defined and easy to follow, with detailed explanations as well as bullet points, examples (many as mini-movies) and illustrations. There are even a few exercises at the end of most lessons, which I highly recommend.
I play by ear. Is this course relevant to me?
I strongly encourage musicians who play by ear to gain the many benefits of the language of music, such as note names, basic music notation etc. However, all musicians, no matter how they learn, should become acquainted with scales, keys and chords, particularly when working with other musicians in regular ensembles such as bands.
I have written those lessons which cover these major topics, as well as lessons on musicianship (such as basic timing), with players who learn by ear kept in mind.
Major points are demonstrated by audio and illustrations with text notation as well as mini-movies of notation with audio. Explanations and exercises cover both written and practical bases to learning.
Is this a complete course?
At the time of writing, this course is a work in progress. I regularly add new posts.
Please like and share these lessons and feel free to make comments or ask questions. This is a project driven by passion: it generates no income (unless someone buys my pocket music theory reference, The Tiny Music Theory Book). A little encouragement would help inspire me to keep going.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
In a hurry? You can scroll down to the summary here.
This lesson should really be called Relative Modes because the following applies equally to other traditional Western diatonic modes such as Dorian or Myxolydian. All these modes are relatives; they are all siblings.
A key is made up of a root note and a mode (such as major or minor).
A scale is an ordered list of the notes of a key.
A mode is the pattern of intervals from one note to the next in a scale.
A key signature is an ordered list of the notes of a key which are sharps or flats. Those not listed in a key signature are naturals.
Keys/scales are named after their root note and mode.
Let’s start by looking at the naturals, A to G – a key signature of 0 sharps or flats. We already know that we can play a major scale by starting on C (C major). We can also play a minor scale by starting on A (A minor). These are the original major and minor modes.
Both these scales, C major and A minor, use the same notes; the naturals, and have the same key signature (0 sharps/flats). The same is true for any key signature.
For any key signature there is one major and one minor key. We call these relative major and minor, because they share the same notes (the same key signature).
Here we can see C major and A minor.
The Relationship Between Relative Major And Minor
The relationship between them can be seen by their root notes.
If you start with A minor, it’s relative major, C major, is the 3rd scale note up from the root note.
If you start with C major, its relative minor, A minor, is the 3rd scale note down from the root note (or, as in the above graphic, the octave of the root note, which of course is the same).
Note: When counting scale notes, we count the starting note as the first note. For example, the 3rd note up from A is C. We count A B C.
If you already have a key signature for the major it’s really easy to count scale notes to find the relative minor. From the major’s root note just count down to the 3rd letter: the key signature takes care of the sign.
If you know the key signature of the major scale, it’s easy to find its relative minor.
In the graphic of C major and A minor, we can also see that the root notes of the relative major and minor scales are 3 semitones apart. If we don’t know the key signature, such as when reading chord charts, it’s important to count semitones as well as letters.
How To Find The Relative Minor
From a major key to its relative minor, count down to the 3rd letter.
If we don’t know the key signature, count the number of semitones between the two notes.
If you count 3 semitones, you have the right answer.
If you count 4 semitones, sharpen the note (if it’s a natural, add a sharp sign).
Example 1: What is the relative minor of Ab major?
The 3rd letter down from Ab (including A itself) is F (count A G F)
Ab is 3 semitones below F, which is the right amount.
The relative minor of Ab major is F minor.
Example 2: What is the relative minor of A major?
The 3rd letter down from A (including A itself) is F (count A G F)
F is 4 semitones below A, so we have to sharpen it to make it 3 semitones below A = F#
The relative minor of A major is F# minor.
How To Find The Relative Major
From a minor key to its relative major, count up to the 3rd letter.
If we don’t know the key signature, count the number of semitones between the two notes.
If you count 3 semitones, you have the right answer.
If you count 4 semitones, flatten the note (if it’s a natural, add a flat sign).
Example 1: What is the relative major of E minor?
The 3rd letter up from E (including E itself) is G (count E F G)
G is 3 semitones above E, which is the right amount.
The relative major of E minor is G major.
Example 2: What is the relative major of Eb minor?
The 3rd letter up from Eb (including E itself) is G (count E F G)
G is 4 semitones above Eb, so we have to flatten it to make it 3 semitones above Eb = Gb
The relative major of Eb minor is Gb major.
We call the interval between the root notes of the relative major and minor a minor 3rd. Don’t worry, we’ll look at interval names properly later in this course- I only mentioned it in case you’ve heard of it. In a nutshell, when we count intervals we include the fist and last notes, hence we call from A to C a 3rd. A minor 3rd is only 3 semitones, not 4.
Note: When counting the interval between two notes as letters, always include the first and last letter.
Once you know the relative major, you can use your memory of the cycle of 5ths for major scales to find the key signature.
Patterns
C major is the original major. All other major scales have the same pattern of intervals from note to note, the same mode, as C major, so whatever we can observe with C major is true for all major scales or keys. The same can be said for A minor: whatever we can observe with A minor is true for all minor scales/keys.
This is good news! Unlike the scientific method, where every instance needs to be proven, with scales we can treat any one example as universal. So much easier, and so much easier to remember. If you forget the relationship between relative major and minor, just look at the keys you know best, C major and A minor.
Know Your Key Signatures
Classical students learn the key signatures of all major and minor keys by rote, usually at primary school age, and often gradually, over the same period of time as they learn to play in these keys.
However, there are a couple of other options which we’ll look at below. I would like to add, though, that it’s definitely worth learning at least the most commonly used keys for your instrument and genre.
The Cycle Of Fifths And Relative Minor/Major
In 12. Key Signatures: Major Keys And The Cycle/Circle Of Fifths we discovered the relationships between major keys and the order of key signatures. We also looked at using a mnemonic to remember the order of major keys and their key signatures.
Potentially we could learn another mnemonic that starts on A instead of C for the minors but we don’t need to. If we know the major key of a key signature, we can find its relative minor by counting down to the 3rd note.
How To Find The Minor Key Of A Key Signature
As we saw with our earlier example, the key signature of three flats,
Remember (or look at) the cycle of fifths to find the major key for that key signature.
Then simply count down to the 3rd scale note to find its relative minor.
If you know the key signature of the major scale, it’s easy to find its relative minor.
How To Find The Key Signature Of A Minor Key
You can also use this in reverse. To find the key signature of a minor scale, count 3 semitones up to the 3rd letter to find its relative major, then use the cycle of fifths to remember/look up the key signature.
First, find the relative major by counting up to the 3rd letter.
Check that the interval is 3 semitones. If it’s 4 semitones, flatten the note (if it’s a natural, add a flat sign).
Now use the cycle of 5ths for major scales, either from memory or by looking below, to find the key signature.
Example: What is the key signature of G minor?
Count up to the 3rd letter = B
Count semitones =4
If 4 semitones, flatten the note = Bb. The relative major of G minor is Bb major.
Look up the relative major in the cycle of fifths (try to do this by memory): Bb major has two flats, Bb and Eb.
The relative minor, G minor, also has two flats, Bb and Eb.
Try These…
Exercise 1:
Name the major and minor keys that have the following key signatures.
Use your memory of the Cycle of fifths or see the graphic below below to find the major key, then find its relative minor by counting down to the third note. Be sure to look at the key signature to see whether that note is a sharp, flat or natural.
Exercise 2:
Now try it the other way round. Name the key signature of the following minor keys.
B minor, C# minor, Bb minor, C minor
Answers at the end of this post.
if you’ve forgotten the cycle of fifths for major keys, here it is…
The Cycle of Fifths For Major Keys
The Cycle Of Fifths For Majors And Minors
For those who just want the ultimate shortcut and have their phone on hand, have a look at The Cycle (circle) Of Fifths which shows the cycle of fifths for both major and minor keys in the same image.
How To Tell Whether A Piece Is Major Or Minor
When you see a notated part, the key signature itself doesn’t tell you whether the piece is in the major or minor key of that key signature. It is expected that the player will be able to tell, once they look at the notes.
What a player looks for is the root note. The root note is the obvious difference between relative major and minor. Once we know both the key signature and the root note, as we play, we can listen to the notes from the perspective of the intended tonality and interpret the music correctly.
So how can we tell which note is the root note?
Looking For The Root Note
In a typical piece, the root note will be evident in the first bar and again in the last bar. By evident, I mean that the note will stand out in relation to the surrounding notes. It may be the longest or strongest note, the note most repeated, or just the note that the neighbouring notes lead towards it.
This is a very broad statement and is mostly, but not always, true. It applies to music which is familiar to the ear: music which we might describe as “musical”, “melodic” or “understandable” when we listen to it.
Note: For more detail on how to find the root note of a written part, please have a look at How Can We Tell Which Key We’re In? This post includes some short examples of what to look for.
It may seem daunting to find the root note out of 7 possible notes but it’s not as bad as all that. The vast majority of music is based on the major or minor modes (and variations of the minor, but more on that in a later post) so for most genres we only need to look for one of two possible notes, not 7. Most of the other modes are more typically used in early music or folk music and publishers of these genres often specify the mode as text, in which case we don’t need to look any further…
Once we know which two notes to look for, we can have a look at the first and last bars of the music to find which one is more prominent.
Summary
To find the relative major of a minor key, count up to the 3rd note in the key signature.
To find the relative minor of a major key, count down to the 3rd note in the key signature.
When counting, don’t forget to include the note you start on in your count.
If you don’t have a key signature, such as when reading chord charts, make sure that the two root notes are also 3 semitones apart (not 4 semitones). This may require you to use a flat or sharp sign.
To find the key signature of a minor key, find its relative major as above and use the cycle of 5ths for major scales to find the key signature.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date wth new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a growing series of holistic investigations into various aspects of music theory. The full list can be found in the Posts page under the category Music Theory De-Mystified.
All comments are welcome. If you enjoy my post, please give it a like and share it or subscribe to my blog.
First I should say that there are two separate subjects here: the overall key and the key at a given point in the piece such as a visiting key. For the purpose of this post I’ll focus on overall key and assume a fairly simple melody but in principle, the same applies to sections and even individual phrases within the piece.
If you’re looking for a quick answer, scroll down to the summary.
When we play a scale, it’s easy to tell what the key is: it’s a combination of the root note and the mode. If we start and finish on C and play the major scale pattern of .2.2.1.2.2.2.1. (semitones), we’re in C major: C major is the major mode built on C.
But how can we hear/feel what key we’re in when the order of the notes varies, as in a melody?
If you’re reading notation, you could say, “look at the key signature”. This is true, but it’s only part of the answer. Within a key signature there are many possible tonalities. Even considering only the major and minor modes, you still need to find the right choice, to help interpret the music correctly. And if you’re listening or playing by ear, you need to be able to “feel” the key.
Look for the root note
To do this, we need to know what the root note is. For a given key signature (set of notes that make up a scale), the mode is determined by where we start the pattern i.e. the root note.
“The Spokes Of A Scale”
The best way to think of a scale is not as a strip of notes lying next to each other but as a series of spokes with the root note at the centre and the other notes around it. The double lines in the following diagram indicate the special bond between the root note and its octave (where the pattern repeats) and between the root note and the perfect 5th (more on that later in this post).
“The spokes of a scale”, diagram of the connections between the notes of a scale
“The Spokes of a Scale” over 3 octaves
(…I see it as a kind of spiral staircase extending up and down the octaves like storeys of an apartment block, where notes on the central column are octaves of the root note…)
Root Note Power
In a piece of music, it’s as much about the relationship of each note to the root note as it is from each note to the next. To be able to feel the key we need to be able to feel the root note.
There’s a good chance that the root note is first, or at least among the first few notes, and also at or near the end, but it’s not always the case. Fortunately there are many other ways it can be pointed out in a melody.
Longest, Strongest and Most
In a melody, other than first and last, these are the three main ways we can highlight the root note.
Longest
Duration is power. Out of a series of different length notes, the longer notes are more prominent. If the root note is a long note it will stand out in the crowd.
Strongest
One way to emphasise the root note is to give it strength. There are two ways to do this:
by playing that note louder than the others or giving the note an accent (a strong attack).
by making the root note appear on the strongest parts of the bar. Time signatures have an implied hierarchy of strong and weak points- a default rhythm, if you like. Placing the root note on beat 1 gives it the most strength. In 3/4 and 4/4, beat 3 is also naturally strong. Similarly, on-beat quavers are naturally stronger than off-beat quavers.
Most
Another way to reinforce the root note is to keep coming back to it. The more often we hear it compared to surrounding notes, the more we believe it.
Examples
Here are a few single-phrase “melodies” using just a single technique to highlight the root note. For the following examples, as you listen, try to hum the note that feels like the root note. Bear in mind that no single note will fit all the time. What we’re looking for is the note that fits most of the time. When you stop listening, which single note would you remember? Try a few if you’re not sure…
The examples are all in C major, so if the techniques I have described are effective, C should feel like the root note.
To make it a fair test, I have tried to make the (mini) melodies fairly random apart from the parameter we’re testing, so they’re not great. Real composers use a combination of these techniques when creating a melody.
LongestStrongestMost
Lowest & Highest, Direction
Although not as significant overall, the lowest and highest notes of a passage within the melody will be naturally emphasised. I see this more as a sense of direction. When listening, we follow the direction of a scale-like series of notes, upward or downward, to its destination. The series directs us to the destination, giving that last note emphasis, before changing direction.
A scale played ascending then descending is as good an example of this as any. Scales are essentially very simple melodies with no detours.
Lowest, highest, direction
Harmonic Reinforcement
The perfect 5th, a great support act
The 5th note of a scale is almost as special as the root note itself and warrants a post of its own. I will say that it has both the capacity to blend well with the root note to support it (even if the notes are one after the other rather than played together) and to be a convenient destination for the melody to visit, a temporary root note of its own.
As a supporting note it is second to none. A 5th nearby will reinforce the presence of the root note by “pointing to it”. The 3rd note, especially the major 3rd, can also help in this way.
Some melodies place all 3 notes of the home key’s triad (chord) near each other, virtually acting as an arpeggiated chord, providing an even stronger emphasis.
Harmonic reinforcement from the perfect 5th
Accompaniment
We haven’t talked about chords yet. Chords have an enormous say in what feels like home. Chords (at least the basic types) feature the three most important notes of a key, the 1st (the root note), the 3rd and the 5th. These notes blend so well together that they reinforce the chord’s root note.
While the chord sounds (if it sounds for long enough), it’s hard not to feel that its root note is, temporarily, the root note of the piece.
The most prominent chord overall, especially towards the beginning and end of the piece, is generally that of the home key.
Other chords can also feel like home for a while if they sound for long enough, providing visiting points in the melody. This is one of the tools a composer can use to create music that has a journey, a sense of going places, rather than being stuck at home the whole time like a COVID lockdown.
The techniques described in this section are also used to establish the new key after a modulation (key change).
Even when no chords are played, the melody’s sense of direction and use of the above techniques can suggest some of these temporary keys. Chords can also be played melodically, as a series of notes called a triad. Many melodies are largely made up of scale-like passages and triads.
In A Nutshell
To answer the title question: look for the root note. The music makes sense when you can hear/feel how the other notes relate to the root note.
Look for a strong note or a strongly supported note early in the piece and towards the end. Feel the flow of the melody’s phrases- where the phrases start and end, which notes are emphasised. When a phrase is arriving home, you will hear it.
Once you know the root note, the mode will become evident, because you’ll interpret the other notes from the root note’s perspective. You can confirm this by playing the notes of the melody as a scale starting on the root note. If you have chosen the root note correctly, the tonality of the scale will match the overall tonality of the piece.
Much of the content is based on my upcoming music theory reference, Music Theory De-mystified, which is currently planned for release as an e-book by the end of 2022.
Please feel free to comment. I have a slightly unorthodox way of presenting music theory concepts but the concepts themselves are well established. If you like my posts, please subscribe so you can be informed of new posts.
