The diagram that is often depicted for the Cycle of Fifths is:
(This chart is courtesy of Grosse Pointe Music Academy)
The above diagram is typically how we see the Cycle (or Circle) of Fifths (sometimes it is labeled as Fourths as well). To be honest, I don’t really like this common diagram as it doesn’t really have enough information and frankly, quite confusing. Their other diagrams that I have seen has almost too much information and also can be difficult to decipher and understand.
I prefer this:
| CYCLE OF FIFTHS | ||||||||
| Number of Sharps | Major Key | Sharps | Relative Minor | |||||
| 0 | C major | A minor | ||||||
| 1 | G major | F♯ | E minor | |||||
| 2 | D major | F♯,C♯ | B minor | |||||
| 3 | A major | F♯,C♯,G♯ | F♯minor | |||||
| 4 | E major | F♯,C♯,G♯D♯ | C♯minor | |||||
| 5 | B major | F♯,C♯,G♯,D♯,A♯ | G♯minor | |||||
| 6 | F♯major | F♯,C♯,G♯,D♯,A♯,E♯ | D♯minor | |||||
| 7 | C♯major | F♯,C♯,G♯,D♯,A♯,E♯,B♯ | A♯minor | |||||
| Number of Flats | Major Key | Flats | Relative Minor | |||||
| 0 | C major | A minor | ||||||
| 1 | F major | B♭ | D minor | |||||
| 2 | B♭major | B♭, E♭ | G minor | |||||
| 3 | E♭major | B♭,E♭,A♭ | C minor | |||||
| 4 | A♭major | B♭,E♭,A♭,D♭ | F minor | |||||
| 5 | D♭major | B♭,E♭,A♭,D♭,G♭ | B♭minor | |||||
| 6 | G♭major | B♭,E♭,A♭,D♭,G♭,C♭ | E♭minor | |||||
| 7 | C♭major | B♭,E♭,A♭,D♭,G♭,C ♭,F♭ | A♭minor |
The term relative minor refers to the minor key (whether it is natural minor, harmonic minor or melodic minor) that has the same number of sharps or flats as the major scale.
By the way, the term key refers to the scale the music is based on and the key signature refers to the sharps or flats that make up the scale. With regards to harmonic and melodic minors, the added sharps or naturals that are used to alter (specifically raise a semitone) the seventh note of the scale (in the case of the harmonic minor scale) and the sixth and seventh note (on the way up in the melodic minor scale) are not considered part of the key signature, but are referred to as accidentals.
To start looking at a Cycle of Fifths, you always start with C major because it has zero sharps or flats. It is interesting to note that since keys that have sharps in them, as they increase the number of sharps in the scale, the name of the new key is an interval of a fifth higher than the previous one. This pattern follows all the way until you get back to C (or to be more precise, C♯).
Conversely, the keys that have flats in them, as they increase the number of flats, you move a fifth lower than the previous one and it continues this pattern until you get back to C, which is really C♭.
If you also look at the order of the sharps or flats, they too follow the fifths pattern, with sharps always a fifth higher (to the right) and flats always lower (to the left).
Exactly the same pattern is applicable to the relative minors for both the sharp and flat keys.
I hope you find my table and explanations useful in deciphering and understanding keys.