Active Melody

Learn to play blues guitar.

How to use the Circle of Fifths (5ths) on Guitar – EP408

Description

In this week’s guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to use the circle of fifths to find the 1, 4, 5 chords in any key, find the relative minor of any chord, and how to create songs by understanding chord families and which chords go together.

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Comments

  2. Biker13 says

    Bold move! Jumping right into theory. No musical composition to grease the wheels first! You have no idea how many YouTube videos I’ve watched on the Circle of Fifths. I honestly don’t know why I have this fascination with the Circle of Fifths. But I know that after all those videos I’m still waiting for someone to make it seem meaningful to me. Hopefully you’re that guy Brian! Let’s see 🙂

  6. RNArizona says

    Brian, this is not the first video that I’ve watched on this topic. The others were interesting but left me wanting more, i.e how do I use this information. You really did a superior job in explaining that, and my remaining questions, as well as giving me some music theory foundation that I should have learned long ago.

  7. Biker13 says

    OK, you actually DID do a better job of explaining it than anyone else. And you also did the exact same thing that drives me crazy that everyone else does. NO ONE will ever talk about the diminished chord. Everyone brushes that aside. Come on, is it really that complex?! I want to know about the diminished chord. I feel like I’m being robbed of one of the colors in my palette just because someone else is telling me I won ‘t use that color much. Let me deicide that. Maybe that can be your new pitch for premium membership – you explain how the diminished chord in the key works.

  8. Cardo says

    It might be worth mentioning that the Circle of Fifths also shows the harmonized major scale, for example in the key of C the chords are C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am and Bdim. This pattern of Major, minor, minor, Major, Major, minor, diminished holds true for all keys. Another useful concept is that when going clockwise the intervals are fifths while going counterclockwise the intervals are fourths, which is why in the southern hemisphere it’s called the Circle of Fourths (just kidding).

  11. Mark N says

    Love this style of lesson of course alongside your usual types Brian, I like the idea of getting some homework from you for some lessons. Really helps me to focus on the points made and to learn properly too.

  12. Philippe G says

    Woaof! Ok, it will take me 3 to 5 times going over the lesson and practice exercise to really assimilate this. I am glad you touched on the 1-4-5 combination. Brian, would you have a lesson to recommend that deals with the basics of 1-4-5 for a neophite? Thanks,

  15. Bill B says

    I have been looking forward to the day you started incorporating/teaching more theory! This weeks lesson is worth the price of admission alone. Great explanation, Brian… very well done 👍🏼 👍🏼

  16. steph_70 says

    Hey Brian. Yup theory turns a lot of people off! But hey, really nice of you to sneak one in from to time to time. The ones that are turned off by it, there are plenty of videos on your site to keep them busy for one week 🙂 I much prefer your compositions, but this one was a must for me!

  17. Ralph P. says

    Very good and concise explanation Brian. I like how you touched on “borrowed chords” and “secondary dominants”. These concepts go a long way in understanding how songs and chord progressions are written and the thought process behind the progressions. It’s fun and a good exercise to take one of your favorite songs, “Yesterday” for example, and analyze and understand why McCartney went to F#m and B7th while in the key of G. I’m sure McCartney probably never saw “The Circle Of Fifths” wheel, but for those of us who don’t happen to be geniuses, the wheel has all of the answers right there. (Paul borrowed a ii-v-i to get to e minor). Very clever use of secondary dominants. It’s all on that weird little wheel.
    Ralph

  19. charjo says

    Brian,
    How about a follow up lesson on composition? A lot of your lessons are on finding a way to play a lead over a progression but few are on how to create the backing track. You often say your compositions start with a chord progression. Perhaps you could give a lesson on some typical chord progressions used in a verse and then how you might use the Circle of Fifth’s for a typical change up in chords for a chorus and maybe even a bridge. Do you typically go to the relative minor or how does this work? This could involve the occasional borrowed chord and secondary dominant as well. I could envision another lesson on some typical rhythm’s you might fall back on for the progressions like a rumba or waltz vs rock, shuffle , slow blues or bo diddley style etc. I think those kind of lessons would also help us become more complete players.
    John

  20. Todd F says

    Have you done any lessons on borrowed chords/parallel keys? If so, I’ve missed them because I definitely don’t understand them, would love to see more on that topic…thanks to you, I do understand secondary dominants, I love that sound

  22. Tremelow says

    Not quite the typical EP we have gotten used to, but very valuable for any serious guitar player. I have watched quite a few YT videos on the circle of fiths and often wondered why there was so much talk about so little. Now you are showing that less is more. What I am trying to say is: Great lesson!

  23. Norbert says

    Brian, as quite often before: instructive, entertaining, to the point!

    Your pracise-relevant theory-lessons are one of the bests I´ve ever seen.
    What do you think: wouldn´t a lesson on modulation (transitions to different keys) fits very well to the “circle-lesson”?

    All the best

    Norbert

  27. Raymond P says

    Great presentation Brian
    I thought I had a reasonably good grasp of the Circle of Fifths prior to this lesson but I must say that the way you explained it made it much easier to understand and apply it in my music.

    Thank you Brian,
    Ray P

  28. Blaine L says

    I thought I already knew everything there was to know about the Circle, but nope, I learned some things here, for example using the Circle to find borrowed chords. The only thing I think you might have included was that the jazzers often call this the Circle of Fourths, and go around the circle in the other direction, but that’s neither here nor there.

    My one question: would a D minor 7th sound better than a D7 when resolving to an A minor? Any advantage to using one and not the other, or are they both equally “good”?

    I hope you do more lessons like this in the future, you have a real knack for explaining complex material.

    • Nick P says

      I think the answer is in your question there Blaine…. would it “sound” better….. there’s no right or wrong, it’s what “sounds” best to you given the style of the song you want to play 👍. Those are two quite different sounding transitions.

  29. Jim Dog says

    GREAT LESSON! Using the circle of 5ths, the bonus track was easy to figure out. Is there any way you could challenge us to figure out the chord progressions on some popular rock or R&B songs without copyright issues? I’d love to apply this knowledge and have feedback to determine my success or failure.

  30. JimD says

    I learned (some) theory long ago based on a piano layout. It’s nice to see you teach it with nary a keyboard in sight. 🙂 I might be in the minority here, but I’d love to see more of this kind of thing, even if it wasn’t full lesson deep dives. Maybe a once a week Theory Thursday, or even once a month, that addresses one small aspect of theory as it pertains to the fretboard.

  33. Robert M says

    I’ve never heard the circle of fifths explained in such practical terms so well, I have always learned best with bite size portions and this lesson, among the many others, has left me wanting to learn more, which, IMHO is one of the many reasons I love the guitar so much. It’s an amazing, never ending journey of acquiring knowledge. This is another excellent example of an innovative and valuable lesson taught by a gifted and talented teacher, Thank you Brian.

  34. Andre H says

    In my view this lesson is a bit too much geared towards beginners. To compare: with the triplets lesson about 2 months ago there was also a very cool backing track and small piece of music to learn that was more for the intermediate player. Win win. Anyway, just saying. Still loving this site big big time.

  37. David S says

    Brian, Been looking at this circle for about 30 years and never could see all that you just put into it.Had a music teacher that was just a good friend that told me after she got her masters degree that music is all about numbers and to get good you need to learn the number system.Finding more and more she is right.Your teaching is showing me you’re the man.

  38. Mike R says

    I have been wondering when you would do this lesson. I was taught a long time ago to practice going around the Circle of 5ths or 4ths (either way) whenever you practice your major, minor, augmented and diminished chords. This is especially helpful I find when practicing the Caged System you have been teaching us. The patterns that emerge help me see the repetition of the patterns that exist up and down the neck. I had to go back and consult my college theory book (generally for keyboard harmony) to see how close the Circle of 5ths relates to what Walter Piston calls the Table of Usual Root Progressions. This also helps with understanding what order to play the chords showing in the Circle.

    1 chord is followed by 4 or 5, sometimes 6, less often 2 or 3.
    2 chord is followed by 5, sometimes 6, less often 1, 3 or 4.
    3 chord is followed by 6, sometimes 4, less often 2 or 5.
    4 chord is followed by 5, sometimes 1 or 2, less often 3 or 6.
    5 chord is followed by 1, sometimes 6 or 4, less often 3 or 2.
    6 chord is followed by 2 or 5, sometimes 3 or 4, less often 1
    7 chord is followed by 3, sometimes 1.

    Look how similar 18th century Harmony was described compared to the Circle of 5ths. Our ears have changed a lot over the last few hundred years and the chords we use now for rock and blues sometimes deviate from Pistons description. Our ears accept more dissonance these days than in the past. This was an excellent lesson Brian. You really hit it out of the park when you went into the borrowed chords. I agree with some of the other students that it would be helpful to do a regular lesson on composition and just how the progressions we are playing relate to playing lead off the small pieces of the Caged System chords on the top 3 or 4 strings.

  42. David B says

    Thanks Brian, I never comment here, but that was the clearest and simplest way I ever have seen it explained. I’ll be “borrowing” the PDF’S from here to give my students if you dont mind!

  43. Kai Gero L says

    Hi Brian! This was extremely helpful. However, I need more help.
    See, I used the lessons and analyzed some songs I like and was surprised how many of them are based on this very principle. But for some others, that in my ears have very common progressions, it just doesn’t work. How come?

    One example: One of the most common progressions I know is E, G, A. G is not part of the E circle of six. Is it a borrowed chord? It sounds strange to me that such a common progressions needs to borrow a chord.

    Another, maybe better example. The White Stripes’ “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground” has a main progression that goes: A, G, C, D, A. Then there’s some sort of bridge going: F, G, A.

    It is a very nice progression but G again is not part of that circle. And neither is F.
    If such a simple song and progression already has to borrow 2 chords (yes, both F and G are part of Am/C) then I wonder how useful all of this really is.

    Am I missing something? Is it just very common in blues rock that you borrow chords?
    Ironically I always found Indie Rock sounds more complex but all the songs I compared use this circle perfectly. What is it about blues rock progressions that they don’t fit in here?

    Would be very happy if you could reply. Thanks!

    • charjo says

      Kai,
      It looks like the chords that don’t fit are borrowed from the parallel minor key. I think I read somewhere that rock relies heavily on major chords because the high degree of guitar distortion used emphasizes the harmonic overtones especially the major third just making major chords sound better. Therefore, you often end up with a major b7 chord which lends to the myxolydian mode being used so often in rock.
      John

    • Rick P says

      Just reading your post Kai, looking at the circle of 5ths, if I start on the outer ring at an “A” as the key the white stripes are playing that song , it looks to me that all of the chords in in this song fit perfectly in the explanation Brian gave in this lesson.
      A is the 1, G is the 7th, C is the 3rd, D is the 4th, and back to the 1-A, chorus is F which is the 6th , G which is the 7th , and A which is the 1 chord again. I don’t see any borrowed chords. I’m not sure if I’m missing something, how did you arrive at the borrowed chord theory ? What key did you start at so I can follow your process. Thanks man

      • Kai Gero L says

        Hm, I cannot follow your numbering system. Using the circle for A major we have A = 1, Bm=2, C#m=3, D=4, E=5 and F#m=6.
        How did you come up with the numbering you’re using? Also, Gmajor cannot be the 7th since the 7th had to be a diminished chord.

        Unfortunately Brian never responded to this. But I found a reply on another (and free) website. In the blues (rock) we borrow the major chords from the parallel minor key. More precisely the bIII, bVI, and bVII diatonic chords. As the other website states: “Notice that the bIII, bVI, and bVII are diatonic chords in a minor key—not in a major key. So when we use these chords in a major-key song, we are borrowing chords from the parallel minor key. In essence, the bIII, bVI, and bVII add a minor-key quality to a major-key song.”

        That’s a spot on explanation. Using these chords along the major chords of the circle of 5ths makes them sound like minor chords in the song although they’re major chords. The C major, G major and F major in the White Stripes song are not chords in the circle of 5th for A major but they are major chords in the circle of 5th for A minor, the parallel minor key.

  44. Gunneson says

    Brian, best review on this I’ve seen.
    Would it be wrong to think if you go to the left (4th) it would be the scale “mixolydian scale” in that key or (5th mode in that key) I might be totally off. Example: if I want to play a mixolydian scale in the key of G, go one left which is C so play a C scale which would be the mixolydian scale (5th mode) in G ? Would this work for the rest of this diagram ? Apologize if I’m way off.

      • Chris White says

        Nope, he’s right. In the key of G the C major scale has all the notes of the G Myxolydian scale because G is the fifth of C.
        The way you can recognize this is the C major scale has an F which can be seen as the flat 7 of G which is the characteristic note of the Myxolydian scale.

  48. Shane B says

    Now that was the best explanation of the Circle of 5ths that I’ve ever seen. I finally understand it.Thank you Thank you Thank you…. You always continue to expand my musical knowledge and foster that desire to keep learning no matter how challenging it might be.

  49. Jan M says

    Correction:
    Look at sheet “Circle of Fifth Homework” at number 4 (bonus jam track):
    Part A: number 2 must be: number 6.
    So the corrected chord numbers are: Part A: 1, 4, 1, 6, 5 ,1

    Great lesson Brian, thank you!!

  51. Vorocnan says

    I always thought there was something dastardly cliquish about Active Melody and the keymaster, this circle of 5ths confirms my suspicions of sorcery and evil deeds beware all who worship the keymaster🎸😅

  54. Tom D says

    Hi Brian,

    Most of the guitar theory books I have show the circle of fifths and I have looked at the pages and quickly turned to something more interesting. I thought the only reason it existed was to work out how many sharps or flats each key had. That way you could identify what key sheet music was in. You have just taught me what a great tool it is. Well done!

  55. Slimpicker says

    Wow. Thanks for explaining the Circle Of Fifths Chart. Thanks to your Lessons EP362 and EP399 Triad lessons I was able to use C, D, E triad shapes to find the chords all over the neck of the guitar. Learning is taking place!

  56. Larry M says

    I am 74 years old and playing for most of my life, and have heard of the “Circle of Fifths”, but your explanation in this lesson is the clearest and most informative I have ever heard.

    Thanks

  57. Andrew G says

    Most Youtubers tell us everything they know about the circle of fifths like they think they are talking to other people who know everything about the circle of fifths. You, Brian, actually managed to keep in mind that you were TEACHING the circle of fifths. Thanks for making the circle a useful tool for my learning.

  58. vatrooperpilot says

    Brian, Your lesson on the Circle of Fifths (5ths) was excellent. It was very informative. I have finally understood how to use the Circle of fifths (5). Your teaching methods have really helped me.

    Thanks,

    J. A. Faulkner, Jr.

  61. Mike K says

    Ok, so I don’t know how many explanations of the circle of 5ths that I’ve heard, but that was the first one that made sense to me! Very clear. Now I understand the concept and how to use it. Thanks for the clear explanation.

  62. Jack B says

    This is the best explanation for the use of the Circle of 5ths ever. I had no idea all that information was there. I knew it would tell you about key signature, but that’s about it. Fantastic lesson, it’s like you translated and exposed a secret document for all to understand.

  64. Jim C says

    Geez Brian… I have tried to understand the circle of fifths for 30 years and could never figure it out. You just clearly explained it in 15 minutes! Thank you.

    For next week’s lesson could you explain quantum physics, nuclear fission and the theory of space and time? I’ve alotted 30 minutes for that lesson.

    Well done!

    Clancy

  67. Piotr P says

    Hello Brian

    I did homework and I notice some inconsistency between EP408 homework and EP408 bonus
    You said that in bonus track in key of C the numbers shall be as follows: “Part A: 1, 4, 1, 2, 5, 1” – EP408 homework.
    In fact we have (in EP408 bonus) C,F,C , Am, G,C and that gives me 1,4,1,6,5,1

    Many Thanks for your lesson it’s grate.

  68. Trevorarden says

    Thanks Brian, as well as the excellent lessons and compositions, I find these bits of theory incredibly useful. I have come across the circle of fifths quite a few times but never seen an explanation so compact and straightforward as yours! Now I can actually use it easily in songwriting.

    Keep on rocking

  69. Chris White says

    Great explanation Bryan.
    I keep hoping that you will integrate more discussion of intervals when you are showing leads and chord embellishments. I get it that it is beyond beginners but it seems like the major scale and intervals are so essential to being oriented on the instrument.
    Also you can use the circle of fifths to easily determine what harmonica to use when playing a blues: From the desired key on the guitar go counterclockwise one note so in the key of G a C
    harmonica will work if you are playing the blues. So called cross Harp.

  71. Joe C says

    Brian, no pun intended, you ROCK dude! Your site is so awesome, you take so much of the pain out of learning how to play this complex instrument so many of us love. I can’t say it enough, thank you so much for creating all of these beautifully arranged lessons and this community, it’s such a blessing…

  72. Matt S says

    Fantastic lesson really got a lot out of this one. Any chance we could delve a bit deeper and relate this to the modes. My guitar teacher has said if I want to change my soloing up a to use mixolidian mode. Which is one step to the left … or the major scale of the 4 chord. Which I have been using and works great! is there a way of tying in the other modes?

  75. Allan C says

    Great lesson Brian!!
    I am one of those that read, and teach, music notation as well as Tabs. For beginning guitar students I really stress the importance of basic music theory.
    I love your explanation of the Circle of 5ths, and will enjoy sharing it with my students. This presentation really make a lot of since.
    Thank You, and God bless you!!
    Mr. C.

  76. Stratmantoo says

    Brian,
    The Circle of 5ths had always been an interesting concept and a diagram tucked in behind a lot of other papers on my music stand. It is now a valuable tool and has been promoted to the front of the stack. Thank you so much, I love your explanation of it.
    Dick (Stratmantoo)

  80. james w says

    Most meaningful explanation of circle of fifths I have seen. Amazing job thanks for the effort. It actually makes perfect sense. The other ones I have seen are not geared towards fretted instruments.👍👍👍

  81. Rob S says

    Brilliant lesson Brian, as you pointed out in the intro, many of us have read the theory about the circle of 5ths but struggled with using it. This lesson makes it crystal clear why we, as fretted instrument players we struggle with it. Now it makes sense. thanks.

    Rob

  82. Darrell Arnold says

    Wow. I found this lesson and the practice I’ve been doing around it transformational. Since watching it, I’ve been practicing transitions between these various chords in different voicing up and down the neck. This is helping me internalize these various voicings much better than any of my practice so far. Thanks so much. Now I’m eager to integrate this into future songwriting.

  83. CHRISTIAN K says

    Hi Brian,
    Thank you for this useful lesson.
    One question: You explained us how to borrow chords when we begin in major, but when you play in a minor scale (Am for example), what would be the borrowed chords in that case?
    Thank’s

  85. David B says

    Am I crazy? The bonus material implies that part A in C is 1-4-1-2-5-1. Why in the the jam track does it go to the 6( Am) instead of the 2 (Dm). If I’m right , its a small mistake in a very powerful lesson on theory!

  89. pan054 says

    yes, a very practical and focussed lesson, thanks vm (there is nothing as practical as a good theory).
    Using the circle(s) for the minor mode, we can use the same system for finding the chord family, but how does the chord numbering change?

  93. miklaz says

    Thanks for the great graphics that complement your great lessons I have seen many circle of 5ths videos, but this is the best. One question: what is the “Art” of choosing which key should one start the folky I IV V and other chord progressions with , e.g. jazzy I V7 II7 V7? Is this a completely subjective emotional “Art-zy” mood question rather than harmony theory? I choose the I chord key for improvisations simply by what my current mood suits. That is why the circle of 5ths is useful for me.
    By the way a useful short summary of six popular chord progression styles illustrating the circle of 5ths theory from Howlin’ Hobbit 2003 at
    https://bytownukulele.ca/old/Portals/UkuleleClub/Songs/uke_chord_progressions.pdf

  94. Randy G says

    I must admit that the Circle of 5ths never really drew my attention as a useful tool as it was always presented in the most convoluted way. When I saw Brian’s lesson title, I went ‘Hmm…if Brian is teaching it, must be useful.’ Yup – sure is. Thanks very much!

  95. Rich F says

    Brilliant lesson, Brian. I have seen the Circle of Fifths online before, and have always avoided looking at it, as it looked complicated!

    Your lesson is concise and very clear! Lightbulbs exploding everywhere! Such clarity in your tuition style.

    I really like the way that you showed us the 6 chords that go together as a slice of the cake! And just when I was thinking “What about writing in a minor key?” Yiu covered that too!

    Brilliant! Many thanks!

  96. Colin C says

    Excellent lesson, thanks Brian. Silly question… it’s damn hard to look at the diagram and commit it to memory. Any sneaky ways to remember it instead of the obvious i.e. analyse and practise bit by bit? A teacher I had told me her mneumonic of Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle. For some crazy reason I remember it. The other ‘side’ of the Circle, flats and sharps, is a bit confusing and you kind of avoided that area, or maybe I was just too scared and looked away! Using the Circle practically to recognise which chords are available in which key is really useful. Perhaps it could be linked to lessons that expands to 7ths, minor 7ths, sus chords etc. and explores the possibilities of substituting chords to give tunes interest. I too often find I’m using a 1,4,5, often in C (and using a capo to change key!) when I could explore substituting some relative minors and even borrowing a chord from another key. Your lessons are awesome. I feel guilty that I do not devote enough time to them as I spend most of my music time on writing songs.

  97. Bill A says

    Brian is a master at deconstructing complex topics, making them accessible to the most theory weary. But what makes Brian’s lessons incomparable to 99% of others online–free or paid–is his meticulous development of practice material. It’s not enough to just “know” something; one must apply new knowledge in context to consolidate it into understanding and prepare it for active use and long-term memory. That’s where so many “teachers” or “teaching sites” come up short. And its so damn frustrating.

    Thank you for distinguishing yourself in this way, Brian. I’ve studied theory for decades and it never stuck, until now.

  102. Bert S says

    Brain
    Thanks for sharing all this knowledge with us, your teaching it is really amazing, you take your time to explain everything in details, it is not only about teaching, but i can tell you do want to help people to enjoy playing guitar the proper way.

    God Bless
    Bert

  103. Larry S says

    Brian,
    You are an amazing teacher. You have the gift of being able to explain complex ideas in an understandable manner… and I really appreciate how the lessons build on each other. Kudos to you web master for designing an easy-to-use site with excellent visuals.

    I have exceeded my initial expectations and now look forward every day to my online session.

    Thank you.

  104. Martyn S says

    I’ve been on active melody a year now, and it’s still my ‘go to’ site to get my head around guitar issues that are complex to me. As an older player picking up the guitar again after 50 years
    I have lear

  109. Thurman M says

    I have used Nick Manoloff’s wheel of these chords for many years, and I still have it, but never understood the rest, as you have explained in this lesson. Thanks! I wish I could have found a teacher like you back in 1956.

    • Greg C says

      Just to clarify my previous comment, just in case it looks like a put down of Brian’s other lessons, I meant the best lesson specifically on the circle of 5ths that had a practical component, not the best lesson of all Brian’s lessons that had a practical component.

  112. Jason W says

    Wow, that was amazing. At first, I couldn’t get the first four chords in the practice section to sound good – I’ve just been doing YouTube stuff and stuck in the 1.4.5 progressions. Then I turned on the jam track and suddenly was forced to add even more chords. Eventually got it to sound ok after lots of times practicing.

    Then I thought my brain was going to melt when I had to try and figure out how to transpose it into F and find a set of chord positions that made sense and I could move around through the changes.

    So glad I had to struggle through that because it reinforced my learning the bottom two string notes plus my caged a and e forms with major minor changes… so satisfying when I got the key of F worked out. We’ll see how it goes for B.

    I just joined and definitely think this is the place for me. Thanks a million, Brian.

  114. Clem says

    I watched it a third time, and learned more. This is one of your best instructional videos! Your yearly donation is so much worth this kind of instruction. I am so grateful! Thank you!

  115. Michael M says

    Hi, I finally understand what this chart means! Thank you. I have a question though. In the homework it said to make a song in major and minors, I know the minors are in the inner circle but is there an order to them ? Can the chart be read to see where the 123456 starting from the inner minor note? For example if I want a song in Am in 145 how do I find it with the chart. Thanks, Michael

    • Michael K says

      Let’s say you want to create a song in Em, you would simply start with the 6 (Em) and if you were to go in order, it would be 6, (7), 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. But I’m guessing you would not go in exact order to make a song it might go 1, 6, 4, 5 or possibly 6, 4, 2, (borrowed dominant). So in the last case we are using a B7 chord to add the tension before resolving back to the 6 chord (Em). Make sense? There are many melodies/rhythms/arpeggios or walking base lines you could throw in to spice it up.

  116. Georg B says

    Hi Brian,

    This is an excellent lesson. It answers “hundreds” of questions I have had about the circle of fifth. It’s clear and precise and well presented as I have never seen it before. Thank you.

    Georg

  117. JoeD1 says

    It’s been a couple years since Brian made this lesson and I found it most helpful with practical use of the Circle of 5ths. I don’t frequently use the Circle of 5ths so I now have a great reference when I need it.

    I was using Ry Naylor’s YouTube lesson (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nJesLVDX4g) which has a lot more practical uses that I don’t frequently use. So now I have 2 references!

  118. Harold V says

    Thanks Brian. Great Lesson. I do have an app on my Android cell phone called “Chord Wheel”. I use it regularly, especially on open players night for our local blues society when the key is called and the chord numbers are called out The app allows me to press on any key and the chord numbers are displayed along with a visual of all of the keys as you blocked out in this recent lesson.

  119. Michael C says

    My subscription to your site continues to pay dividends. Whenever I want to know more about a particular aspect of guitar playing, I come to your site to “see how Brian explains it”, because I know it will be in a way that is both comprehensive and useful. This lesson is no exception. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with all of us.

  120. Jay F says

    I’ve been working on a Peter Green song and needed a refresher on how chords fit together……went back and dug this lesson out……what a great resource library!
    Thanks Brian!
    Jay

  121. Robbie M says

    This lesson shows how to use the circle of 5ths to easily find the I-IV-V-ii-iii-iv-vii(dim) in a major key. What this lesson doesn’t cover though is how to use the circle of 5ths to easily find i-iv-v-ii(dim)-III-IV-VII of a minor key. Am I wrong?

  122. John C. says

    Near the end of the first video Brian says, as a bit of a throwaway comment, that if you want to find the chord family for a minor key progression first find the minor chord in the inner circle and then using that as the centre point of the pie slice formation those are the chords that will fit that key.

    So, say you want to compose in the key of Am – using Brians pie slice formation the acceptable chords would be – Am, Dm, Em, F, C, and G – however that misses the (ii) chord from the Am scale, the Bm. Is that simply because using Brians dismissal of the diminished (vii) chord in the major scale progression, as the (ii) chord in a natural minor scale is diminished it has also been dismissed?

    I also have a similar question as Robbie M, which is can you use the circle of 5ths to easily find the most common chord progression in a minor key or is a progressions in a minor key more flexible so you can use almost any progressions that sounds good? Or is there some way of using the circle of 5ths to define what is good or not so good as a minor key progression, if that makes sense?

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