|
Fundamentals of Music Theory |
Key Signatures
Imagine that you were to write a piece in Db Major. Every note except F and C would need a flat:
Hard to read, isn't it? To make life easier, composers write all the accidentals they'll need for a given scale at the start of the staff. Click below, and watch what happens!
Look how much simpler our piece becomes when we add a key signature:
 |
Each Major and minor key has its own key signature, which places the accidentals used in the key at the start of the staff. The sharps and flats are written in a special order: the order
they are added as you move from scales with few sharps or flats
to more sharps or flats.
This pattern continues for all of the sharp keys. A similar pattern exists for flat keys, by going a perfect fifth down between keys. Follow this pattern to complete the chart below: |
Next Page: Order of Sharps and Flats