Lesson Five
The objectives for this lesson are to use the order of sharps to determine the key of the music, list the order of sharps, state a mnemonics to remember the order of sharps, describe how the order of sharps is used in a piece of music, and correctly count the number of sharps in the key signature.
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So close to the end! You have done great so far just hang in there a little longer. So far you have learned to select a piece of music written for your voice range that has two key signatures, how to locate key signatures, that C Major is the only key signature without flats or sharps, and how to describe the basic parts in a key signature. In the previous lesson you learned how to identify flat key signatures using the order of flats. You will remember that flat key signatures are always the second to last flat except for F Major which only has one flat sign. Look how far you have come! In this last lesson you will discover how easy it is to identify sharp key signatures in music. Before we start remember that sharp signs look like number signs. Let's get started!
Just as flat key signatures have the order of flats, sharp key signatures have the order of sharps. The best part is that the order of sharps is simply a reversal of the order of sharps. The order of flats is B-E-A-D-G-C-F and the order of sharps is F-C-G-D-A-E-B. If you have memorized the order of flats simply reverse the letters and you have memorized the order of sharps. You can also create a mnemonic to remember the order of sharps by reversing the one learned from Lesson Four. To remember the order of sharps remember the phrase 'Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle'. Therefore, if the key signature has four sharps they must be F-C-G-D.
Once you have memorized the order of sharps, the next step in identifying the key is fairly simple. First, count the number of sharps in the key signature. Next, take the last sharp and go a half step higher to identify the key signature. For example, if there are three sharps, F-C-G, the last sharp is G sharp and a half step above G sharp is A therefore the key signature is A Major. It is as easy as that!
Just as flat key signatures have the order of flats, sharp key signatures have the order of sharps. The best part is that the order of sharps is simply a reversal of the order of sharps. The order of flats is B-E-A-D-G-C-F and the order of sharps is F-C-G-D-A-E-B. If you have memorized the order of flats simply reverse the letters and you have memorized the order of sharps. You can also create a mnemonic to remember the order of sharps by reversing the one learned from Lesson Four. To remember the order of sharps remember the phrase 'Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle'. Therefore, if the key signature has four sharps they must be F-C-G-D.
Once you have memorized the order of sharps, the next step in identifying the key is fairly simple. First, count the number of sharps in the key signature. Next, take the last sharp and go a half step higher to identify the key signature. For example, if there are three sharps, F-C-G, the last sharp is G sharp and a half step above G sharp is A therefore the key signature is A Major. It is as easy as that!
Now time to practice! Click on this link to practice identifying sharp key signatures. If you need additional help with identifying key signatures or would like more opportunities to practice check out the resources page with more links, videos, and games to help you better understand this skill.