This is a nifty little interactive Circle of Fifths widget that allows you to wander through twelve keys exploring their harmonic relationship. Using either your computer keyboard or simply by clicking around with mouse/trackpad, you can move around the wheel. The interface shows relative minor keys in the inner ring together with major keys on the outer ring. Highlighting one of these keys sound its tonic chord and gives you a clear reference point immediately.
To begin, click on any section of the wheel to establish your home key. This will update centre of wheel to show current mode and key signature. Move to neighboring keys using arrow keys. Right arrow moves fifthward; left arrow fourthward. Up and down arrows changes the selected key position to its relative minor/major. To sound the tonic chord and confirm your choice press either space or enter key.
How to Use the Circle of Fifths Widget
On the right-hand side is a companion panel giving information about what key you are in. This includes the neighbour keys, the key (relative or not), and even the key signature itself. You can also switch to the fifth and fourth neighbour keys to contrast how those scales sound different than before. The bridge of common tones illustrates the common notes between two keys. Notes is shown as teal if they carry across from one key to another; otherwise, they differ. Pressing on any of the buttons will play that note for you and light up momentarily.
The buttons on the right are the diatonic chord family for the chosen key. They each sounds when clicked and is added to progression trail (below). This is like a record of your harmonic decisions. By clicking on the chip in the trail you can play that single chord again. Hit the walk trail button to play through them all in order. To remove final chord hit the retrace button. Lifting the trail delete everything.
At the bottom are sound controls. Use volume slider to adjust overall volume of instrument. Use tempo slider (in beats per minute) to set speed of automated sequence playback. Select from open crown or stacked third voicings. Open crown will spreads out the intervals for a wider sound, while stacked thirds keeps chord’s notes close together. Voicing changes the sound of chords in both orbit and trail sequences.
This launches a pre-programmed orbit of all diatonic roots from chosen fifth upwards. Beginning on the tonic note, the orbit then travels up the key and cadences back home. A dot also orbits around the centre track to indicate progress. This can be used to hear the relationship of each chord within the key. You have control over speed of the orbit using tempo slider. You can make it play faster or you can take it slow and study.
Many of the features are available with keyboard shortcuts that do not require use of mouse. The number keys 1-7 will adds the corresponding diatonic chord to progression trail. So one is the tonic chord, five is the dominant, etc. Backspace erases final chord from the trail. Full orbit sequence can be launched by pressing letter O. It’s very easy to compose a progression quickly this way.
If you can build a basic chord progression in a known key such as G minor or C major. Then add each chord one by one and listen to how they connects. Try the neighbor comparison to understand how changing from key changes only one note. Swap the voicings to hear the diffrence in how the same progression sounds. Finally, look at the shared-tone bridge to help you see why some key changes sound smoother then others.
It’s a tool for playing and exploring. Click on various keys and modes. Try out the orbit option that gives you a whole cycle of harmonics. Alter the speed (tempo) to suit how you want to listen. Choose a key and add some chords, then start to explore circle from there.