Brainlag Music

Circle-of-5ths sequences

Music theory, Baroque style, 12 minutes

Roots falling a 5th each time: the engine of Baroque harmony.

Falling 5ths

A circle-of-5ths sequence moves its roots down a 5th (or up a 4th) each time.

In a major key the diminished VII appears in first inversion.

In C major: the roots fall a 5th each time (C, F, B, E, A, D, G, C), the diminished VII in first inversion

The rest of this lesson and its 5 practice questions are in Brainlag Music Theory.

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