Here a small adjustment is made: the first and third sharps are shifted down an octave to avoid using ledger lines in the key signature.Īs we saw in Example 8–10 and Example 8–12, we typically divide keys into two categories: “sharp keys” (those whose key signatures consist of sharps) and “flat keys” (those whose key signatures consist of flats).

The only exception is the set of sharp key signatures written beside a tenor clef (the last key signature on the first line). The symbols are simply moved up or down to match the arrangement of pitch letter names on the lines and spaces of the staff as indicated by the clef. Notice that, for the most part, the placement pattern of sharps and flats remains the same, regardless of the clef. The upper tetrachord of a C-major scale (G, A, B, C) could, for example, also serve as the lower tetrachord of a G-major scale: Since the pattern of whole steps and half steps is identical in each major tetrachord, they can both be used interchangeably as either the upper or lower tetrachord of a major scale. In C major, for example, the lower tetrachord would be (C, D, E, F) and the upper (G, A, B, C). In Chapter 6 we discussed how one octave of a major scale can be divided into two tetrachords, an upper and a lower, each of which follows the same a W-W-H step pattern. Courtesy accidentals are sometimes placed in parentheses, although you will see that this practice is far from consistent as you go from one score, composer, or publisher to the next. They occur after a previous accidental altered a given pitch (in this case, the A § at the end of the first measure) to remind the performer that a scale degree has gone back to normal as specified by the key signature. Such accidentals are referred to as courtesy accidentals.

2, for instance, seems superfluous, given the A b in the key signature. The flat next to the A on the fourth beat of m. Note: You will frequently come across accidentals that may seem unnecessary. The following example shows the same melody in E major but here makes use of a key signature instead of writing out all the accidentals: In Example 8–4 we transposed “Ah! vous dirai-je, maman” (“Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”) to the key of E major. In keys other than C major, the key signature is written to the right of the clef, just before the time signature, at the beginning of each line of music. In C major, there are no sharps or flats in the key signature, just as there are no sharps or flats in the C major scale. The key signature is a collection of sharps or flats that indicates which notes should be raised or lowered so that they belong to the key. These sharps and flats used in the corresponding major scale are usually written at the beginning of each line in a key signature. (Two major scales that share seven pitch classes in common are considered to be the same scale.) Since each major scale is unique in this way, a piece in a major key will draw from the same pitches as its corresponding major scale.

(Again, see Chapter 6 for a lengthier discussion of the major scale.) One major scale may share as many as six pitches with another, as we saw in Example 8–3, but not all. The melody sounds the same, only higher:Įach major scale contains a distinct set of seven pitch classes. The following example transposes it (rewrites it at a different pitch level) to E major by raising each note up two whole steps, putting E in the most stable position. The melody from Example 8–3 can be written in any major key. Because the pitch class C is the most stable-sounding pitch in the melody, Example 8–3 is in the key of C major. Whenever F appears, on the other hand, it is given a shorter note-value, and is always within a descending stepwise passage toward C. The excerpt begins and ends on C, and C holds a prominent position at the end of m. Simply looking at the melody, we can see that C occupies a more stable position than the pitch class F. It is likely that you heard the pitch C as having greater stability. Listen to the melody again and consider which pitch, C or F, sounds more stable-in other words, which pitch sounds more restful, more like a musical destination and less like an attraction along the way. To determine the key of this melody-C major or F major-we need to decide which note sounds most like the tonic. But all of these pitches also belong to the F major scale (F, G, A, B b, C, D, and E). This is a very good indication that this melody is in the key of C major. All of these pitches belong to the C major scale (C, D, E, F, G, A, and B). As you can see, this melody uses the pitches C, D, E, F, G, and A.

Scales of music keys