i was wondering if anyone could guide me to what exactly the circle of fifths is used for and how I can use it to my advantage? I kind of understand it, but I would like ofr someone to take me from square one and explain in detail what it is and how it works for song creation(how I can make a song using it)
thanks

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Good fucking question. I was wondering the same

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http://www.denrecordingstudios.com/index9.htm

the second one down talks about the circle of fifths.

Hope that helps

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Think of it as a snake eating it's tail. Although everything is tuned 2 cents flat to make the current system work, a price most musicians are willing to pay. If things weren't tuned that way, the snake would almost eat it's tail, but keep chasing it forever.

C Major scale contains no sharp or flat notes - C D E F G A B. This is the only Major scale with only natural notes. All other keys will have a varying number of sharp or flat notes. Each key has a unique key signature.

If we build our next scale starting with the 5th note of the C major scale, we get the G Major scale - G A B C D E F#. Notice that the G Major scale has one note that is sharp (F#).

Now, lets build a third scale starting from the 5th note of the G Major scale. That will give us the D major scale - D E F# G A B C#. Notice that we now have two notes that are sharp (F# and C#).

If we build a fourth scale from the 5th note of the D Major scale, we get the A Major scale - A B C# D E F# G#. As you've probably guessed, the A Major scale has one more sharp than the D Major scale.

That's how it works.

If you build a Major scale from the 5th note of another Major scale, the new scale will have one more sharp than the scale you started with.

That's where the "5ths" in the circle of 5ths comes from, but what about the "circle" part? The circle comes from the fact that if you continue to build a scale from the 5th note of the previous scale, you will eventually wind up right back at the beginning, C Major:



G is the 5th note of C Major.

D is the 5th note of G Major.

A is the 5th note of D Major.

E is the 5th note of A Major.

B is the 5th note of E Major.

F# is the 5th note of B Major.

C# is the 5th note of F# Major.

G# is the 5th note of C# Major.

D# is the 5th note of G# Major.

A# is the 5th note of D# Major.

F is the 5th note of A# Major.

C is the 5th note of F Major.



We're right back where we started, as if we traveled in a circle.

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But my problem is...
Who gives a fuck whether the next key around has one more sharp or flat? Maybe some mofo playing a keyboard but not me. Hell, I don't even know the fretboard well enough yet to know if I'm playing a sharp most of the time.

Seems like the most important thing to guitarists might be that there's only a one note difference between keys around the circle, and that's important for composing and improvising because it means you only have to change your scale pattern on the fretboard by one note to change to the next key, if you want to change to another key for any reason.

However, since I have a hard enough time composing in one key, I don't really see the immediate utility of this circle of fifths thing. Just my ignorant POV. Fuck it and turn the gain up higher.

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Please, dont ever make another post in one of my threads again.

But to everyone giving tips and such. Thank you it is highly appreciated.

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ok now I understand the circle of fifths, now how can I do circle progressions using it?

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One use for the circle of 5ths in a compositional sense is as a key changing device. Changing the key signature in the middle of a piece of music is called modulation. The smoothest modulation occurs between keys that have only one note difference between the two keys. This is exactly how the keys are organized with the circle of fifths.

A good way to practice modulation, utilizing the "circle", is to pick a position on the guitar neck and "run the scales" through the circle. Without moving up or down the fingerboard more than one fret, you should be able to pick out each successive sharp or flat key and play that Major scale.

If you are soloing over a chord progression that suddenly shifts to a new key, the ability to quickly change to the appropriate scale is a must. You won't always have the luxury of shifting your hand position in order to change to a new scale.

Also, take a look at the CAGED system, it explains this in depth.

http://www.wholenote.com/default.as...l%3D912%26p%3D1

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