Relative key

Last updated March 05, 2024

In music, relative keys are the major and minor scales that have the same key signatures (enharmonically equivalent), meaning that they share all of the same notes but are arranged in a different order of whole steps and half steps. A pair of major and minor scales sharing the same key signature are said to be in a relative relationship.^[1]^[2] The relative minor of a particular major key, or the relative major of a minor key, is the key which has the same key signature but a different tonic. (This is as opposed to parallel minor or major, which shares the same tonic.)

For example, F major and D minor both have one flat in their key signature at B♭; therefore, D minor is the relative minor of F major, and conversely F major is the relative major of D minor. The tonic of the relative minor is the sixth scale degree of the major scale, while the tonic of the relative major is the third degree of the minor scale.^[1] The minor key starts three semitones below its relative major; for example, A minor is three semitones below its relative, C major.

The relative relationship may be visualized through the circle of fifths.^[1]

Relative keys are a type of closely related keys, the keys between which most modulations occur, because they differ by no more than one accidental. Relative keys are the most closely related, as they share exactly the same notes.^[3] The major key and the minor key also share the same set of chords. In every major key, the triad built on the first degree (note) of the scale is major, the second and third are minor, the fourth and fifth are major, the sixth minor and the seventh is diminished. In the relative minor, the same triads pertain. Because of this, it can occasionally be difficult to determine whether a particular piece of music is in a major key or its relative minor.

Distinguishing on the basis of melody

To distinguish a minor key from its relative major, one can look to the first note/chord of the melody, which usually is the tonic or the dominant (fifth note); The last note/chord also tends to be the tonic. A "raised 7th" is also a strong indication of a minor scale (instead of a major scale): For example, C major and A minor both have no sharps or flats in their key signatures, but if the note G♯ (the seventh note in A minor raised by a semitone) occurs frequently in a melody, then this melody is likely in A harmonic minor, instead of C major.

List

A complete list of relative minor/major pairs in order of the circle of fifths is:

Key signature	Major key	Minor key
B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭, F♭	C♭ major	A♭ minor
B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭	G♭ major	E♭ minor
B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭	D♭ major	B♭ minor
B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭	A♭ major	F minor
B♭, E♭, A♭	E♭ major	C minor
B♭, E♭	B♭ major	G minor
B♭	F major	D minor
None	C major	A minor
F♯	G major	E minor
F♯, C♯	D major	B minor
F♯, C♯, G♯	A major	F♯ minor
F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯	E major	C♯ minor
F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯	B major	G♯ minor
F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯	F♯ major	D♯ minor
F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯, B♯	C♯ major	A♯ minor

Terminology

In German, relative key is Paralleltonart, while parallel key is Varianttonart. Similar terminology is used in most Germanic and Slavic languages, but not in Romance languages. Adding to the confusion, a parallel chord is derived from the relative key.

Related Research Articles

The major scale is one of the most commonly used musical scales, especially in Western music. It is one of the diatonic scales. Like many musical scales, it is made up of seven notes: the eighth duplicates the first at double its frequency so that it is called a higher octave of the same note.

In music theory, the minor scale has three scale patterns – the natural minor scale, the harmonic minor scale, and the melodic minor scale – mirroring the major scale, with its harmonic and melodic forms.

In music, the tonic is the first scale degree of the diatonic scale and the tonal center or final resolution tone that is commonly used in the final cadence in tonal classical music, popular music, and traditional music. In the movable do solfège system, the tonic note is sung as do. More generally, the tonic is the note upon which all other notes of a piece are hierarchically referenced. Scales are named after their tonics: for instance, the tonic of the C major scale is the note C.

In music theory, a leading-tone is a note or pitch which resolves or "leads" to a note one semitone higher or lower, being a lower and upper leading-tone, respectively. Typically, the leading tone refers to the seventh scale degree of a major scale, a major seventh above the tonic. In the movable do solfège system, the leading-tone is sung as ti.

In music theory, the key of a piece is the group of pitches, or scale, that forms the basis of a musical composition in Western classical music, art music, and pop music.

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In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from the common practice era of Classical music to the 21st century. Chord progressions are the foundation of popular music styles, traditional music, as well as genres such as blues and jazz. In these genres, chord progressions are the defining feature on which melody and rhythm are built.

A chord, in music, is any harmonic set of pitches consisting of multiple notes that are sounded simultaneously, or nearly so. For many practical and theoretical purposes, arpeggios and other types of broken chords may also be considered as chords in the right musical context.

In music, modulation is the change from one tonality to another. This may or may not be accompanied by a change in key signature. Modulations articulate or create the structure or form of many pieces, as well as add interest. Treatment of a chord as the tonic for less than a phrase is considered tonicization.

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In music theory, a diminished triad is a triad consisting of two minor thirds above the root. It is a minor triad with a lowered (flattened) fifth. When using chord symbols, it may be indicated by the symbols "dim", "^o", "m^♭5", or "MI^(♭5)". However, in most popular-music chord books, the symbol "dim" and "^o" represents a diminished seventh chord, which in some modern jazz books and music theory books is represented by the "dim7" or "^o⁷" symbols.

In music theory, an augmented sixth chord contains the interval of an augmented sixth, usually above its bass tone. This chord has its origins in the Renaissance, was further developed in the Baroque, and became a distinctive part of the musical style of the Classical and Romantic periods.

In music, the mediant is the third scale degree of a diatonic scale, being the note halfway between the tonic and the dominant. In the movable do solfège system, the mediant note is sung as mi. While the fifth scale degree is almost always a perfect fifth, the mediant can be a major or minor third.

In music, the submediant is the sixth degree of a diatonic scale. The submediant is named thus because it is halfway between the tonic and the subdominant or because its position below the tonic is symmetrical to that of the mediant above.

In music, the supertonic is the second degree of a diatonic scale, one whole step above the tonic. In the movable do solfège system, the supertonic note is sung as re.

In music theory, a major scale and a minor scale that have the same starting note (tonic) are called parallel keys and are said to be in a parallel relationship. For example, G major and G minor have the same tonic (G) but have different modes, so G minor is the parallel minor of G major. This relationship is different from that of relative keys, a pair of major and minor scales that share the same notes but start on different tonics.

In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The thirteenth is most commonly major or minor.

Chromaticism is a compositional technique interspersing the primary diatonic pitches and chords with other pitches of the chromatic scale. In simple terms, within each octave, diatonic music uses only seven different notes, rather than the twelve available on a standard piano keyboard. Music is chromatic when it uses more than just these seven notes.

In music theory, a dominant seventh chord, or major minor seventh chord, is a seventh chord, composed of a root, major third, perfect fifth, and minor seventh. Thus it is a major triad together with a minor seventh, denoted by the letter name of the chord root and a superscript "7". In most cases, dominant seventh chord are built on the fifth degree of the major scale. An example is the dominant seventh chord built on G, written as G⁷, having pitches G–B–D–F:

In music, tonicization is the treatment of a pitch other than the overall tonic as a temporary tonic in a composition. In Western music that is tonal, the piece is heard by the listener as being in a certain key. A tonic chord has a dominant chord; in the key of C major, the tonic chord is C major and the dominant chord is G major or G dominant seventh. The dominant chord, especially if it is a dominant seventh, is heard by Western composers and listeners familiar with music as resolving to the tonic, due to the use of the leading note in the dominant chord. A tonicized chord is a chord other than the tonic chord to which a dominant or dominant seventh chord progresses. When a dominant chord or dominant seventh chord is used before a chord other than the tonic, this dominant or dominant seventh chord is called a secondary dominant. When a chord is tonicized, this makes this non-tonic chord sound temporarily like a tonic chord.

In music, a closely related key is one sharing many common tones with an original key, as opposed to a distantly related key. In music harmony, there are six of them: four of them share all the pitches except one with a key with which it is being compared, one of them share all the pitches, and one shares the same tonic.

References

1 2 3 Benward; Saker (2003). Music in Theory and Practice. Vol. I. McGraw-Hill. pp. 33–35. ISBN 978-0-07-294262-0. D flat major and a minor scale that have the same key signature are said to be in a relative relationship.
↑ Forte, Allen (1979). Tonal Harmony (3rd ed.). Holt, Rinehart, and Wilson. p. 9. ISBN 0-03-020756-8. The key which shares the same key signature but not the same first degree with another scale is called relative. Thus, e.g. the relative of C major is A minor (no sharps or flats in either key signature); the relative major of A minor is C major.
↑ Benward & Saker 2003, p. 243.

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[B&S-1] 1 2 3 Benward; Saker (2003). Music in Theory and Practice. Vol. I. McGraw-Hill. pp. 33–35. ISBN 978-0-07-294262-0. D flat major and a minor scale that have the same key signature are said to be in a relative relationship.

[2] Forte, Allen (1979). Tonal Harmony (3rd ed.). Holt, Rinehart, and Wilson. p. 9. ISBN 0-03-020756-8. The key which shares the same key signature but not the same first degree with another scale is called relative. Thus, e.g. the relative of C major is A minor (no sharps or flats in either key signature); the relative major of A minor is C major.

[FOOTNOTEBenwardSaker2003243-3] Benward & Saker 2003, p. 243.

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