Cycle of Fourths & Cycle of Fifths

It’s easy to find any diatonic major scale based in this short cut I’ll give to you. It’s not necessary even to know the basic structure of a major scale, you just have to know the name of the musical notes as well as the accidental forms (sharps and flats).

Let’s start with the purest scale – C major (I mean “pure” because there are not any accidentals in there).

Now we take the fifth degree of this scale (G) and start a new one from that. After doing that you just have “corrected” the new scale putting a sharp in the seventh degree.

Well, now you have the second scale from the cycle of fifths. If you continue this exercise from the G Major scale, taking its fifth degree plus a Sharp in the seventh degree of the new scale, you will know all the major scales with their corresponding sharps. It is Important to maintain the accidentals in the next scales of the cycle.

S – step HS – half-step

Now you have to find the major scales using flats through the cycle of fourths. It’s as easy as the last example. You take the C major scale, break it in the fourth degree (F) plus a flat in the fourth degree of the new scale. Keep on this movement to find the other scales.

Its very important to say that there is a relative minor scale starting from the sixth degree of any major one. For example, C Major and its relative A minor scale, with the same notes.

Now you know all diatonic major and minor scales, keep on practicing that to further your studies.

Enjoy!

-Regisson Silva

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