Fun fact: There’s a mathematical reason why the circle of fifths can exist. The western standard division of notes is 12 tone equal temperament, which gives us (rather obviously) 12 unique tones to work with, which we call the semitones. A perfect 5th is an interval of 7 semitones. 12 and 7 are coprime, meaning that they don’t share any common factors; here’s where the magic comes in. Start with 0. Now the rule is to take any number between 1 and 12, and add it to itself consecutively. If the result is bigger than 12, then divide by 12 and write the reminder (or for those mathematicians out there, take the number mod12). Set C as 0, and each number represents a note that many semitones away. Let’s choose 8, for example. So we go 0, 8, 4, 0, 8, 4, 0… Translate this to notes and it’s C, Ab/G#, E, C, Ab/G#, E, C, on and on. Trying with 3 yields this: 0, 3, 6, 9, 0, 3, 6, 9, 0…. This is the sequence C, Eb/D#, Gb/F#, Bb/A#, C, Eb/D#, Gb/F#, Bb/A#, C… As you can see, in these cases we only hit some notes before returning to C. Now let’s try 7 0, 7, 2, 9, 4, 11, 6, 1, 8, 3, 10, 5, 0 Translate that to notes and it’s C, G, D, A, E, B, F#/Gb, C#/Db, G#/Ab, D#/Eb, A#/Bb, F, C Hey look at that; we hit all 12 notes! How did that happen? Well, it’s because of that nifty fact that I mentioned earlier, that 12 and 7 are coprime. This means that smallest amount of 7s you can add to themselves to get to the closest multiple of 12 is 12. Anything else results in a number either too big or small than a multiple of 12. This is also represented by the fact that 7/12 is the simplest form of that fraction. With the other examples, 3 and 8, if we write 3/12 and 8/12, we can reduce those to 1/4 and 2/3 respectively. Now, 7 is not the the only number coprime to 12: there are 3 others. These are 1, 5, and 11. What happens when we apply a similar process? For 1, it’s 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 0. C, C#/Db, D, D#/Eb, E, F, F#/Gb, G, G#/Ab, A, A#/Bb, B, C Otherwise known as our chromatic scale. 5 is just the circle of 5ths in reverse (aka the circle of 4ths); if you look at the number sequence for 7 and go backwards you can see that. This is because 5 + 7 = 12. 11 is the chromatic scale in reverse, because 1 + 11 = 12. Interestingly enough, while not all of the numbers cover the whole selection of 12 notes, they do cover some aspect of music. 0 = unison 1 = chromatic scale ascending 2 = whole tone scale ascending 3 = fully diminished 7th chord tones ascending 4 = augmented triad chord tones ascending 5 = circle of 4ths 6 = tritones 7 = circle of 5ths 8 = augmented triad chord tones descending 9 = fully diminished 7th chord tones descending 10 = whole tone scale descending 11 = chromatic scale descending 12 = octave Man, when arranged like this it really shows how symmetrical music can be, huh? So yeah, that’s your music/mathematics fun fact(s) of the day! Awesome video yet again David! I look forward to the next one!
I laughed my whole life and said I was born with two left ears. In Choir class, professors told me from 3rd Primary until 2nd Secondary to just move my lips and not make a noise. But I listened to your videos and at my retirement, bought a piano. And now am trying to make up for lost time. Merci beaucoup.
My take would be that it represents only a portion of such a table (like the "noble gases" of the periodic table) to the extent that only the seven "church modes" are represented.
@@joannpelas5101learning theory would be akin to learning to read to improve your speech. you don’t have to know how to read to know how to speak, but learning to read broadens your vocabulary and allows you to use language in new and exciting ways. similarly, you don’t need to know theory to know how to play piano or even make your own original music, but it gives you a sense of direction. just remember to not feel like you have to follow all the conventions to music theory, if it sounds good to you it is good :)
For anyone who might care about it as much as I do, I don’t think The Beetles were thinking Gmaj to Cmaj when they wrote I Wanna Hold Your Hand, but more likely Gmaj to Gmixo. When I hear the Gmaj chord in the switch, it still _feels_ like G is the Tonic, which is why I have this assumption, but I understand where you’re coming from.
Absolutely brilliant presentation of the circle of fifths. This is why I subscribe and support this channel. The topics are presented in the most clear and concise way possible. You are a natural teacher, and if you teach beyond UA-cam your students should consider themselves very lucky.
I'm at 8:28 and you've just blown my mind with the tri-tone relationships in the circle. That put so much into proper perspective in terms of intervals and how to spot their patterns. Thank you!
The circle of fifths is always feared at the beginning.... I really like the way you described it. It's really easy to follow! It's also nice to see the relation between chords and the circle. It's a really fast way to build the circle in your head if you don't remember it. So, each chord has the fifth. If you know notes of C Major - C E G, then since G is the fifth you know the the next letter on the circle is G. Than G major - G B D, D is the fifth so D is the next letter. etc. If you don't know the notes of each chord, you can also try to visualise your hand on the piano (the way you play the chord) and try to find notes that way.
O...M...G...THIS IS SOOOO COOL!!! Seriously, I've never really had music theory so I never realized this kind of thing even existed. Thank you for sharing!
Related Keys are where I learned about the Circle of Fifths. As an EDM DJ, Mixing in Key can give you a smoother more consonant transition between tracks.
I just had another eureka moment from a David Bennett video of which I have had many. The link between the COFs and modes just hit like a ton of bricks. Another great video David!
I’m a stuck-in-a-rut guitar player and I just subscribed to you because it’s like you just handed me batteries that I haven’t had in my flashlight for many years. Now I’m hoping I can find one of your videos that will show me how to turn it on once again.
This condensed so much material I've been trying to absorb about the circle in just one neat cohesive video. Your gift for teaching is something that keeps on giving!
Your channel has brought new exciting thoughts, examples, and facts to my 20+ year music knowledge growth. I have a 3 year old now, but as she gets older, we will be going back to binge watch all your videos when I start teaching her about music and theory 😁😁
You sir, have given me the sight of music. For that, I am forever grateful.It's almost too much to wrap my music fan brain around and all you hear are the laws and fundamentals of this 15$ diagram like a codex to all your favorite songs!Thank you .
There is one more very useful application of a circle of fifths. It tells you which chords in a certain key are major chords (these on 11 o'clock, 12 o'clock and 1 o'clock), minor chords (these on 2 o'clock, 3 o'clock and 4 o'clock) and a half-diminished chord (the one on 5 o'clock).
@@TheGerkuman Sure, but if one wants to know the chord qualities for any minor key then there is also a relative major in he outer circle to use for this purpose.
As a non-musician, each video feels like some hidden super complex musical knowledge box that i have somehow found access to. Fascinating! But it's just the basics,of course :)
@ghost mall well,i like to listen and learn about it for fun,but not necessarily for doing it. At least not now, i'm a uni student in International Relations and have enough of other stuff to care about. I do art as a hobby and other craft related stuff. Maybe in the future,not in the mood.
It can also help work out chord progressions in any key. For example, the I V vi IV...pick a chord as "I"...the "V" is one clockwise, the "IV" is one anti-clockwise and the "vi" is three clockwise. (On reflection, I guess this is the same thing as saying you can use the circle of fifths for working out modulations!)
Great stuff, as usual! Another way to look at the circle of fifths and modes can tell you all the modes with the same key signature, in order of brightest to darkest. Using C Ionian as our example again, move one step counter-clockwise to F which corresponds to going brighter (F Lydian). Then move clockwise from C and you get all the other modes in order of darkness: G Mixolydian, D Dorian, A Aeolian, E Phrygian, and B Locrian. And, like everything in the circle of fifths, this same pattern works no matter which key you start on. Thanks, David!
Nice how you provided the well rendered and comprehensive circle diagrams that made the symmetries perfectly clear in ways I hadn’t thought about before. Good work.
My god man! My eyes are open!!! Why didn’t anyone tell me my guitar is a freaking abacus for counting the sharps and flats in a key? It makes so much sense the way describe it! Thank you!
Wow, after watching the video I have a feeling that everything will make sense to me from now on! Thank you David. You gave me that missing link I've been looking for decades ...
I will never forget how much my understanding of music theory was blown wide open with the understanding on the circle of fifths. Easily the most powerful tool a beginner could ever hope for.
Back in highschool band I really undervalued the usefulness of the circle of fifths, something I've definitely appreciated since delving into music theory
Being an artist by trade, the comparisons provided in this video draw direct relation to 2D design elements. I.E. the value scale, color theory, and creating degrees of contrast. This has been incredibly helpful in how I am thinking about music composition. I haven't grasped the wheel of 5th quite as productively as I have here today. Thank you!
Another great video... I never realized about how it can be used to traverse 'modal brightness'. Thanks for opening-up another use for this classic and ever enlightening tool.
David!! Thank you so much for these videos, I absolutely fell in love with music theory this year and your channel has been an incredibly helpful source of information and it made me understand so much more about music than I ever thought I could :) I appreciate your effort you put into this a lot
Oh,this was simply outstanding,amazingly helpful video,just awesome! Thank You very much for it,I just love music,listening to it,including music theory, which I also love very much and thanks to You I have learned so much more about it over the past few months,about a year now ☺️☺️😊😊🎹🎹What a pity, that any instrument I don't play,at least not yet and that ToneGym is also great,been using it every morning at least for half a year now ☺️☺️🤗🥳💪💪
I love these videos, stuff I notice in music but can't explain. It's so satisfying finally being able to understand why music makes me feel what it does and how to make music that I hear in my head.
This is the video I've been looking for. Ever since I found the circle of fifths as a concept and began talking about it with my bandmates I've been feeling kind of hollow. Everyone talks of this circle as the 'one ultimate tool for musicians' and then the video devolves into 'music theory for preschoolers'-level of explaining stuff you really, really don't need the circle of fifths for. This video, however, finally showed me why the circle is useful.
I have struggled with learning music and music theory, and this 1 single video was like the light turning on and I can see now. I am getting emotional because I wish someone taught me this when I was a teenager. every music theory/ instrument tutorial should start with this exact video!
It's nice, sorry I'm raining down on your parade. But I think you haven't really tried before. Just a look through the library, any online music theory / instrument forum 20 years ago, a little bit of Google use, all would have gotten you there 🙈.
Thank you for your videos they are great! And thank you for showing that for figuring out the (Major) Key signature for modes you do not necessarily need to start at C. It works for every starting point in the circle of fifths.
for point 4. there's even a way to memorize the modes on the scale from brightest to darkest (because this concept was also new to me but makes perfect sense): you start at 'F' in the corcle of fifths, which is the brightest when you start playing all white keys from f to f (lydian). Then each step to the right adds darkness, if you take the note in the circle of fifths and continue playing only the white keys, respectively. Then the darkest mode is at H, when playing all white keys from h to h resulting in the locrian scale. Great video!
This has been an amazing video that has explained things to me many others couldn’t in a way that not only means I understand but also can now apply to my music !!! Thanks so much for this!! Keep this coming 🎉🎉
The best explanation of this yet. although I've done a lot of writing this little goat always escaped me. the demos and notation really help to see the mechanics of it. Music theory has always been like math. Memorizing how is no good unless you learn Why... Good job
Thank you so much for your clear explanation about circle of fifth and music theory in general. Your videos are always full of exampled which makes it so much easier to understand. Theory makes more sens when applied like you explain, thaank you 😊
Great video as always. That's a lot of work behind it!!! Every time I see something about the cicle of fifths, I learn something new!! I love the mathematichs it seems to be in the music :-)
When moving through the sharp keys, I simply remember I always need to add the leading tone for the new key, which involves sharping the seventh degree, which is also really useful for tonicizing the new key. For the flat keys it’s the same logic but flattening the 4th for the new key, which is a little less intuitive.
The secret to smoothly jumping directly across the circle of 5ths in a chord progression is to use a half diminished chord. This is especially true if you've just been working your way ccw around it. Example, in C-major... coming from G-C-F, next would be Bb but that root isn't diatonic (making it a good opportunity to go elsewhere). Jumping straight across from F to Bm7b5, we get a diatonic chord with two notes from F (the previous chord) and two from Bb (the chord expected)... that's ready to move on from.
One of my experiments yielded an incredibly versatile technique I keep coming back to: Take any mode, transpose it down a 4th, 3 times for 4 total modes, for example, then write chords within those available notes. You end up with 4 chords all in their unique keys, here's an example I instantly whipped together: The chords I chose: A Dorian, B Aeolian, D Lydian, G# Locrian. Which is parallel to: A Dorian, A Mixolyd, A Ionian, A Lydian Initially taken from: A Dorian, E Dorian, B Dorian, F# Dorian This is with 4ths, overal my favorite and the smoothest alongside 5ths, but try minor thirds, for example. Also don't have to start the cycle on the first chord in the cycle, you can offset it, you can even do both: 1, 5, 2, 6, repeat, 2, 6, 1, 5, repeat etc., the sky is the limit, all the crazy ways to work with cycle chord progressions translate to this, and you can just keep changing up the chords within the cycle. I can provide examples if anyone wants! Seriously, give this a try, it's so simple when you've done it once, do it in midi to get used to it.
@@jaguarcarrera You can usually just play the root (D), major third and sharp 4 to get the D Lydian sound on a chord, basically you just pick notes that set it apart from other modes. However, you could still interpret that as like an altered dominant sound, for example, so the more notes you involve in the chord/melody at that moment, the clearer it is. The interesting part is the common key they all refer to keeps shifting down a 4th, so none of the chords are in the same key, but 5ths/4ths are so related that it's sort of the next best thing. You can however end up with chords of which the roots, 3rds and 5ths + maybe some others form a progression that fits in a single diatonic key, then you can reveal those color tones going outside for a real twist. If it's not clicking yet, I could do something visual when I have some time later! I could just change my profile pic to a midi file if you like
@@jaguarcarrera Also, I've got Example Of Mode Cycle Concept (4ths) on soundcloud, it also has a little picture and a description, and of course a demonstration of one of the MANY ways it can sound
Helpful to understand the 4th level: If you consider the letters to indicate notes rather than key centers, any mode of major is formed by 7 adjacent notes on the CoF. If you mark the root, Lydian has all 6 other notes on the clockwise side, Ionian 5 clockwise and 1 counterclockwise etc until Locrian has all 6 on the counterclockwise side. Also, what the fifth does is accentuating certain higher harmonics without introducing new pitches. This makes the sound more lush, while reenforcing the first note to be the root. This means that taking a step clockwise on the CoF, you'll find the note that goes great with you, while taking a step counterclockwise, you find the note that you go great with. The former is a more positive angle, which to me explains why you go from bright to dark when you go from clockwise to counterclockwise. These insights helped me greatly to fathom the relations between the different modes of different key centers.
As an American, I'm familiar with the word 'counterclockwise'. I am happy to have learned a new British word, 'anti-clockwise' to add to my vocabulary of transoceanic synonyms.
Can’t thank you enough for this incredibly helpful lesson, David. Best explanation of the circle of fifths and it’s use that I’ve ever encountered. Bravo!👏
If you're looking for any video ideas (and it seems you're in no short supply) I'd love one on songs that use dissonance and why they're still pleasant to listen to.
heeey new video, great way to end the week, I'd love if you made an analysis on king gizzard's music, they use lots of strange time signatures, weird song structures, weird production techniques and they cover many genres from jazz to microtonal metal
Fun fact:
There’s a mathematical reason why the circle of fifths can exist. The western standard division of notes is 12 tone equal temperament, which gives us (rather obviously) 12 unique tones to work with, which we call the semitones.
A perfect 5th is an interval of 7 semitones. 12 and 7 are coprime, meaning that they don’t share any common factors; here’s where the magic comes in.
Start with 0. Now the rule is to take any number between 1 and 12, and add it to itself consecutively. If the result is bigger than 12, then divide by 12 and write the reminder (or for those mathematicians out there, take the number mod12). Set C as 0, and each number represents a note that many semitones away.
Let’s choose 8, for example.
So we go 0, 8, 4, 0, 8, 4, 0…
Translate this to notes and it’s C, Ab/G#, E, C, Ab/G#, E, C, on and on.
Trying with 3 yields this:
0, 3, 6, 9, 0, 3, 6, 9, 0….
This is the sequence C, Eb/D#, Gb/F#, Bb/A#, C, Eb/D#, Gb/F#, Bb/A#, C…
As you can see, in these cases we only hit some notes before returning to C.
Now let’s try 7
0, 7, 2, 9, 4, 11, 6, 1, 8, 3, 10, 5, 0
Translate that to notes and it’s C, G, D, A, E, B, F#/Gb, C#/Db, G#/Ab, D#/Eb, A#/Bb, F, C
Hey look at that; we hit all 12 notes! How did that happen? Well, it’s because of that nifty fact that I mentioned earlier, that 12 and 7 are coprime. This means that smallest amount of 7s you can add to themselves to get to the closest multiple of 12 is 12. Anything else results in a number either too big or small than a multiple of 12. This is also represented by the fact that 7/12 is the simplest form of that fraction. With the other examples, 3 and 8, if we write 3/12 and 8/12, we can reduce those to 1/4 and 2/3 respectively.
Now, 7 is not the the only number coprime to 12: there are 3 others. These are 1, 5, and 11. What happens when we apply a similar process?
For 1, it’s 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 0.
C, C#/Db, D, D#/Eb, E, F, F#/Gb, G, G#/Ab, A, A#/Bb, B, C
Otherwise known as our chromatic scale.
5 is just the circle of 5ths in reverse (aka the circle of 4ths); if you look at the number sequence for 7 and go backwards you can see that. This is because 5 + 7 = 12.
11 is the chromatic scale in reverse, because 1 + 11 = 12.
Interestingly enough, while not all of the numbers cover the whole selection of 12 notes, they do cover some aspect of music.
0 = unison
1 = chromatic scale ascending
2 = whole tone scale ascending
3 = fully diminished 7th chord tones ascending
4 = augmented triad chord tones ascending
5 = circle of 4ths
6 = tritones
7 = circle of 5ths
8 = augmented triad chord tones descending
9 = fully diminished 7th chord tones descending
10 = whole tone scale descending
11 = chromatic scale descending
12 = octave
Man, when arranged like this it really shows how symmetrical music can be, huh?
So yeah, that’s your music/mathematics fun fact(s) of the day! Awesome video yet again David! I look forward to the next one!
This has been known to computer scientists for at least 50 years, e.g., Knuth
I laughed my whole life and said I was born with two left ears. In Choir class, professors told me from 3rd Primary until 2nd Secondary to just move my lips and not make a noise. But I listened to your videos and at my retirement, bought a piano. And now am trying to make up for lost time.
Merci beaucoup.
How's it going?
I never realised the circle of fifths is a musician's periodic table, untill this video. Thank you!
That's exactly what it is!
My take would be that it represents only a portion of such a table (like the "noble gases" of the periodic table) to the extent that only the seven "church modes" are represented.
That's an excellent way to look it. I'm a baker learning piano at 54. Perhaps viewing music theory as a recipe to reach my goals would prove helpful.
@@joannpelas5101learning theory would be akin to learning to read to improve your speech. you don’t have to know how to read to know how to speak, but learning to read broadens your vocabulary and allows you to use language in new and exciting ways. similarly, you don’t need to know theory to know how to play piano or even make your own original music, but it gives you a sense of direction. just remember to not feel like you have to follow all the conventions to music theory, if it sounds good to you it is good :)
@@ricomajesticIt’s useful but not that important.
I love your approach to music theory and how you explain it makes it seem so easy. You always do a great job on these videos!
facts
^^^^
True! I just discovered this channel and I must say it is fantastic!
For anyone who might care about it as much as I do, I don’t think The Beetles were thinking Gmaj to Cmaj when they wrote I Wanna Hold Your Hand, but more likely Gmaj to Gmixo. When I hear the Gmaj chord in the switch, it still _feels_ like G is the Tonic, which is why I have this assumption, but I understand where you’re coming from.
Absolutely brilliant presentation of the circle of fifths. This is why I subscribe and support this channel. The topics are presented in the most clear and concise way possible. You are a natural teacher, and if you teach beyond UA-cam your students should consider themselves very lucky.
I'm at 8:28 and you've just blown my mind with the tri-tone relationships in the circle. That put so much into proper perspective in terms of intervals and how to spot their patterns. Thank you!
The circle of fifths is always feared at the beginning.... I really like the way you described it. It's really easy to follow!
It's also nice to see the relation between chords and the circle. It's a really fast way to build the circle in your head if you don't remember it.
So, each chord has the fifth. If you know notes of C Major - C E G, then since G is the fifth you know the the next letter on the circle is G. Than G major - G B D, D is the fifth so D is the next letter. etc.
If you don't know the notes of each chord, you can also try to visualise your hand on the piano (the way you play the chord) and try to find notes that way.
Good tip thanks.
O...M...G...THIS IS SOOOO COOL!!! Seriously, I've never really had music theory so I never realized this kind of thing even existed. Thank you for sharing!
Related Keys are where I learned about the Circle of Fifths. As an EDM DJ, Mixing in Key can give you a smoother more consonant transition between tracks.
I just had another eureka moment from a David Bennett video of which I have had many. The link between the COFs and modes just hit like a ton of bricks. Another great video David!
😊😊😊😊😊😊
Couldn't you have thought of a fifth way?
lol😂
exactly my thought. The fifth way might be something along the lines of not just chord progression but chord *construction*.
Or just called it the circle of fourths
GLORIOUS!!!
building of negative harmony
btw great subject for another video
I’m a stuck-in-a-rut guitar player and I just subscribed to you because it’s like you just handed me batteries that I haven’t had in my flashlight for many years. Now I’m hoping I can find one of your videos that will show me how to turn it on once again.
Thanks for subscribing 😃 hopefully my videos can give you a little inspiration 😊
This condensed so much material I've been trying to absorb about the circle in just one neat cohesive video. Your gift for teaching is something that keeps on giving!
Your channel has brought new exciting thoughts, examples, and facts to my 20+ year music knowledge growth. I have a 3 year old now, but as she gets older, we will be going back to binge watch all your videos when I start teaching her about music and theory 😁😁
I have cloth ears and no idea about music. Yet you teach, and have taught, me so much.
You have a rare talent.
You sir, have given me the sight of music. For that, I am forever grateful.It's almost too much to wrap my music fan brain around and all you hear are the laws and fundamentals of this 15$ diagram like a codex to all your favorite songs!Thank you .
There is one more very useful application of a circle of fifths. It tells you which chords in a certain key are major chords (these on 11 o'clock, 12 o'clock and 1 o'clock), minor chords (these on 2 o'clock, 3 o'clock and 4 o'clock) and a half-diminished chord (the one on 5 o'clock).
For major key.
@@TheGerkuman Sure, but if one wants to know the chord qualities for any minor key then there is also a relative major in he outer circle to use for this purpose.
The pace and content of this presentation is perfect...allows mental absorbtion and eflextion while maintaining intrest.
As a non-musician, each video feels like some hidden super complex musical knowledge box that i have somehow found access to. Fascinating!
But it's just the basics,of course :)
Couldn't agree more!
It helps understanding to try things out with a polyphonic instrument, too. You don't have to be any good at it, or to have a "pro" instrument.
@ghost mall well,i like to listen and learn about it for fun,but not necessarily for doing it. At least not now, i'm a uni student in International Relations and have enough of other stuff to care about. I do art as a hobby and other craft related stuff.
Maybe in the future,not in the mood.
It can also help work out chord progressions in any key. For example, the I V vi IV...pick a chord as "I"...the "V" is one clockwise, the "IV" is one anti-clockwise and the "vi" is three clockwise.
(On reflection, I guess this is the same thing as saying you can use the circle of fifths for working out modulations!)
One of, if not the best UA-cam video on the Circle of Fifths. Thank you so much for explaining its key uses so clearly and concisely!
Watched over 10 "Circle of Fifths" videos, none of them were as easy as this one to understand. Much appreciated David! 🙏
This might be the most practical, flexible way that I’ve ever seen anyone break down the circle of fifths. Thank you 🙏🏽
Great stuff, as usual! Another way to look at the circle of fifths and modes can tell you all the modes with the same key signature, in order of brightest to darkest. Using C Ionian as our example again, move one step counter-clockwise to F which corresponds to going brighter (F Lydian). Then move clockwise from C and you get all the other modes in order of darkness: G Mixolydian, D Dorian, A Aeolian, E Phrygian, and B Locrian. And, like everything in the circle of fifths, this same pattern works no matter which key you start on. Thanks, David!
Of course, if you're Miles Davis, you might actually prefer to start your circle on "middle F" with no sharps or flats...
FINALLY!! you cleared up all my questions and confusion on this and I just wanna say thank you!!!
This might be your best video yet, and that's saying a lot. Well done! This approach to harmony is SO useful.
Literally the only place I've seen that made this make so much obvious sense. Thank you for breaking it down to understand so simply. 😀
Thank you for this video. I didn't understood very well modal brightness until now but you explain it in a very simple and useful way!
Nice how you provided the well rendered and comprehensive circle diagrams that made the symmetries perfectly clear in ways I hadn’t thought about before. Good work.
David, thank you very much for this video 😎
😁😁😁😁😁😁
My god man! My eyes are open!!! Why didn’t anyone tell me my guitar is a freaking abacus for counting the sharps and flats in a key? It makes so much sense the way describe it! Thank you!
Wow, after watching the video I have a feeling that everything will make sense to me from now on!
Thank you David. You gave me that missing link I've been looking for decades ...
This is a eureka video which has enhanced my understanding of The Circle of 5ths to no end. Thank you.
😃😃😃
David, that was an absolutely brilliant video. I had a general understanding but now you have given me so much more to think about. Many thanks.
This was terrific. I have to study the fourth section on the relationship between the circle of fifths and modes.
I wish he played an example of those when showing them.
I will never forget how much my understanding of music theory was blown wide open with the understanding on the circle of fifths. Easily the most powerful tool a beginner could ever hope for.
Back in highschool band I really undervalued the usefulness of the circle of fifths, something I've definitely appreciated since delving into music theory
Really fantastic graphical demonstration of the Circle and how it can be used. Brilliant.
Being an artist by trade, the comparisons provided in this video draw direct relation to 2D design elements. I.E. the value scale, color theory, and creating degrees of contrast. This has been incredibly helpful in how I am thinking about music composition. I haven't grasped the wheel of 5th quite as productively as I have here today. Thank you!
Great vid David. You are a real star of the internet with these. Thank you.
Your way of linking modes to the circle of 5ths is very useful. I've not heard it explained like that before. many thanks !
Another great video... I never realized about how it can be used to traverse 'modal brightness'. Thanks for opening-up another use for this classic and ever enlightening tool.
I love these videos. Could you consider making a video about Plaid's music? They use unconventional but beautiful chord progressions, worth studying.
You are the BEST music teacher, David !
Thanks!!
David!! Thank you so much for these videos, I absolutely fell in love with music theory this year and your channel has been an incredibly helpful source of information and it made me understand so much more about music than I ever thought I could :) I appreciate your effort you put into this a lot
I loved the examples form the popular music, well done, I hope you didn't get demonetized.
Thanks to you I knew Tonegym, what a fun tool.
Oh,this was simply outstanding,amazingly helpful video,just awesome! Thank You very much for it,I just love music,listening to it,including music theory, which I also love very much and thanks to You I have learned so much more about it over the past few months,about a year now ☺️☺️😊😊🎹🎹What a pity, that any instrument I don't play,at least not yet and that ToneGym is also great,been using it every morning at least for half a year now ☺️☺️🤗🥳💪💪
Thanks!!
One of the most comprehensive and well epxlained videos on this topic!
I love these videos, stuff I notice in music but can't explain. It's so satisfying finally being able to understand why music makes me feel what it does and how to make music that I hear in my head.
Brilliantly presented and informative as always. Thank you so much for your content.
Thank you!
This is the video I've been looking for. Ever since I found the circle of fifths as a concept and began talking about it with my bandmates I've been feeling kind of hollow. Everyone talks of this circle as the 'one ultimate tool for musicians' and then the video devolves into 'music theory for preschoolers'-level of explaining stuff you really, really don't need the circle of fifths for. This video, however, finally showed me why the circle is useful.
I just found this video, and watching it was like a hundred puzzle pieces floating in my head suddenly fell into place! Well done!
I have struggled with learning music and music theory, and this 1 single video was like the light turning on and I can see now. I am getting emotional because I wish someone taught me this when I was a teenager. every music theory/ instrument tutorial should start with this exact video!
It's nice, sorry I'm raining down on your parade. But I think you haven't really tried before. Just a look through the library, any online music theory / instrument forum 20 years ago, a little bit of Google use, all would have gotten you there 🙈.
I just had an Eureka moment thanks to you. Brilliant video!
The 4th (Modal Brightness) interpretations was new to me. Quite interesting! Thanks for sharing!
Wow, this is the first I understand this concept. I was always a bit confused before, but you explained it so well!
This is the first time that I have seen how modes relate to the circle of fifths. Good information, thanks.
I like the commentary on modes and how they too can be described by the circle of 5ths. That’s very cool!
Thanks David. You are a gem
And that you reference The Beatles is a nice extra
HANDS DOWN this is THE BEST CO5 video I've ever seen, thank you!
Not only i understood what the circle of fifths is, i also learned what music modes are, thank you dude :D
Your videos are pure gold. Wow.
so glad we have you david!
Thank you for your videos they are great! And thank you for showing that for figuring out the (Major) Key signature for modes you do not necessarily need to start at C. It works for every starting point in the circle of fifths.
finally i am beginning to understand some of this, thanks for visualizing it so clearly!
Well done David. Thanks for giving me a different perspective on the circle of fifths.
😃😃😃
for point 4. there's even a way to memorize the modes on the scale from brightest to darkest (because this concept was also new to me but makes perfect sense): you start at 'F' in the corcle of fifths, which is the brightest when you start playing all white keys from f to f (lydian). Then each step to the right adds darkness, if you take the note in the circle of fifths and continue playing only the white keys, respectively. Then the darkest mode is at H, when playing all white keys from h to h resulting in the locrian scale. Great video!
Miles Davis probably would have put "F" at the top of this circle...
This has been an amazing video that has explained things to me many others couldn’t in a way that not only means I understand but also can now apply to my music !!! Thanks so much for this!! Keep this coming 🎉🎉
dis man got one of da best channels on youtube
The best explanation of this yet. although I've done a lot of writing this little goat always escaped me. the demos and notation really help to see the mechanics of it. Music theory has always been like math. Memorizing how is no good unless you learn Why... Good job
Thank you so much for your clear explanation about circle of fifth and music theory in general. Your videos are always full of exampled which makes it so much easier to understand. Theory makes more sens when applied like you explain, thaank you 😊
Great video as always. That's a lot of work behind it!!!
Every time I see something about the cicle of fifths, I learn something new!!
I love the mathematichs it seems to be in the music :-)
When moving through the sharp keys, I simply remember I always need to add the leading tone for the new key, which involves sharping the seventh degree, which is also really useful for tonicizing the new key. For the flat keys it’s the same logic but flattening the 4th for the new key, which is a little less intuitive.
The secret to smoothly jumping directly across the circle of 5ths in a chord progression is to use a half diminished chord. This is especially true if you've just been working your way ccw around it. Example, in C-major... coming from G-C-F, next would be Bb but that root isn't diatonic (making it a good opportunity to go elsewhere). Jumping straight across from F to Bm7b5, we get a diatonic chord with two notes from F (the previous chord) and two from Bb (the chord expected)... that's ready to move on from.
Thank you so much. You always present theory in such a satisfying way.
One of my experiments yielded an incredibly versatile technique I keep coming back to:
Take any mode, transpose it down a 4th, 3 times for 4 total modes, for example, then write chords within those available notes.
You end up with 4 chords all in their unique keys, here's an example I instantly whipped together:
The chords I chose: A Dorian, B Aeolian, D Lydian, G# Locrian.
Which is parallel to: A Dorian, A Mixolyd, A Ionian, A Lydian
Initially taken from: A Dorian, E Dorian, B Dorian, F# Dorian
This is with 4ths, overal my favorite and the smoothest alongside 5ths, but try minor thirds, for example.
Also don't have to start the cycle on the first chord in the cycle, you can offset it, you can even do both: 1, 5, 2, 6, repeat, 2, 6, 1, 5, repeat etc., the sky is the limit, all the crazy ways to work with cycle chord progressions translate to this, and you can just keep changing up the chords within the cycle.
I can provide examples if anyone wants!
Seriously, give this a try, it's so simple when you've done it once, do it in midi to get used to it.
@M what is a ”D Lydian" etc. chord?
And what do you do with those 4 chords you've found? Do they belong to the same key center?
@@jaguarcarrera You can usually just play the root (D), major third and sharp 4 to get the D Lydian sound on a chord, basically you just pick notes that set it apart from other modes. However, you could still interpret that as like an altered dominant sound, for example, so the more notes you involve in the chord/melody at that moment, the clearer it is.
The interesting part is the common key they all refer to keeps shifting down a 4th, so none of the chords are in the same key, but 5ths/4ths are so related that it's sort of the next best thing. You can however end up with chords of which the roots, 3rds and 5ths + maybe some others form a progression that fits in a single diatonic key, then you can reveal those color tones going outside for a real twist.
If it's not clicking yet, I could do something visual when I have some time later! I could just change my profile pic to a midi file if you like
@@jaguarcarrera Also, I've got Example Of Mode Cycle Concept (4ths) on soundcloud, it also has a little picture and a description, and of course a demonstration of one of the MANY ways it can sound
Helpful to understand the 4th level:
If you consider the letters to indicate notes rather than key centers, any mode of major is formed by 7 adjacent notes on the CoF. If you mark the root, Lydian has all 6 other notes on the clockwise side, Ionian 5 clockwise and 1 counterclockwise etc until Locrian has all 6 on the counterclockwise side.
Also, what the fifth does is accentuating certain higher harmonics without introducing new pitches. This makes the sound more lush, while reenforcing the first note to be the root. This means that taking a step clockwise on the CoF, you'll find the note that goes great with you, while taking a step counterclockwise, you find the note that you go great with. The former is a more positive angle, which to me explains why you go from bright to dark when you go from clockwise to counterclockwise.
These insights helped me greatly to fathom the relations between the different modes of different key centers.
Thanks David. Another brilliant video.
Love the musical examples!
Thank you so much David for your excellent lecture.
Thanks!
Someone should give you an award for being the perfect music theory teacher. Thank you for all!
That last trick is very enlightening! Keep it up I love your videos
Loved your explanation 😊
Glad you touched on the key signature !
Very helpful thanks david
this is so cool and you’re explaining it so beautifully! 🎉
Mode connection is a real eye opener, thanks!
As an American, I'm familiar with the word 'counterclockwise'. I am happy to have learned a new British word, 'anti-clockwise' to add to my vocabulary of transoceanic synonyms.
Can’t thank you enough for this incredibly helpful lesson, David. Best explanation of the circle of fifths and it’s use that I’ve ever encountered. Bravo!👏
Another excellent visual way to explain music theory. Thks... look forward to more videos.
Best video EVER on circle of fifths (and I've watched MANY :)
If you're looking for any video ideas (and it seems you're in no short supply) I'd love one on songs that use dissonance and why they're still pleasant to listen to.
This was BRILLIANT. Thank you.
Great work! Thank you so much 🙏
Thanks!
heeey new video, great way to end the week, I'd love if you made an analysis on king gizzard's music, they use lots of strange time signatures, weird song structures, weird production techniques and they cover many genres from jazz to microtonal metal
I've just recently started learning theory and I have been considering skipping learning the circle of fifths this has most certainly changed my mind
Well done, another very good one
Very clear and concise. The best review I have seen yet. When I need practical help understanding music theory I go to David Bennet.
Man, I love your explanations!
Thank you!