Hi everyone. I’m a self-taught amateur pianist.
I’m trying to make sense of scales— beyond just memorizing them— and understand the patterns. I was under the impression that the circle of fifths would help understand scales and why they are what they are.
Eg:
*Why is a C scale absent of sharps, when the G scale isn’t?*
I’ve been trying to learn to read music and understand theory through a combination of watching YouTube videos and studying sheet music, but the ads on Youtube are totally intrusive, and I keep seeing explanations that seem to contradict each other because of my limited understanding of the background information. There is so much information out there and most of it seems to hinge on context that I don’t understand.
To learn and apply information, I generally need to watch people do something or look at thorough diagrams/charts; as well, I really benefit from actual conversations with other people in which they’re talking to me and I am able to ask them questions directly. I want to start taking lessons as soon as I can afford it so I can have one on one conversations with a trained teacher.
Edited for clarity!
Thanks so much♡
*Edited again: THANK YOU, really, I wish I could give all of you a million reddit awards. Seriously, so many of you have given me totally thorough answers that have still been easy to understand. I love it.*
In: 12
Just start with C major. It shows you how notes resolve a perfect 5 down from where you begin. For example. 1-5 CDEFG 1-5 GABCD So if you are creating music C to G will sound like a cadence. Is there something specific? Before you worry about circle of fifths I would practice learning scales. Understanding how scales are constructed will help you understand the circle of 5ths. Scales are created using Roman numerals. For example C G is Roman numeral I to V.
Latest Answers