Additional Info: Major Keys

Remember that there is a specific order of sharps and flats on the Key Signature? This order is used to determine what key a piece of music is in.

What's a key?

A key is defined as the focal point of a scale. It represents the first position or note that you play for each respective scale. (I.e. In the  C Major Key, the scale is C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C.)

You may even have heard about keys and not even realized it, since many composers named their pieces with their respective keys. For example, Sonata in F by Beethoven is in the F Major key, as already demonstrated in the title.

There are 2 types of keys, major and minor (there are several different types of minor keys). Telling major from minor is very easy because Major keys sound "happy" while minor keys sound "sad."

Major Keys

Every placement of sharps or flats on the Key Signature has its own respective major key.

Sharps

For sharps, we can find the key by taking the name of the note one half-step above the last sharp.

Example: when there's an Fon the Key Signature, the note one half-step above the last sharp (F) is G, so the key is G Major. When there are an Fand a C, the note one half-step above the last sharp (C) is D, so the key is D Major. And so forth.
Note: when all the sharps are used (F, C, G, D, A, E, and B), the key is C Major, and when F, C, G, D, A, and E are used, the key is F Major.

Flats

For flats, we can find the key by taking the name of the second-to-last flat.

Example: when there are a B and an E, the second-to-the-last flat is B, so the key is B Major. When are are a B, E, and an A, the second-to-the-last flat is E, so the key is E Major. And so forth.
Note: When there's only one flat (B), the key is F Major.

Review

  1. A key is the focal point of a scale.
  2. There are 2 types of keys, major and minor.
  3. Every placement of sharps or flats on the Key Signature has its own respective major key.
  4. For sharps, we can find the key by taking the name of the note one half-step above the last sharp.
  5. For flats, we can find the key by taking the name of the second-to-last flat.

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