Unit 10 — Keys of G and F
One sharp, F sharp, makes the key of G major; one flat, B flat, the key of F major. The key signature says it once, at the start of every line, for the whole piece and every octave. Unit 10 teaches both keys, then plays real music in them: the Minuet in G, five short pieces by Schumann (four from his Album for the Young, one from Scenes from Childhood), and the Blue Danube.
- Prerequisite: Unit 9.
- New notes: F♯4 and F♯5 (treble), F♯3 (bass); B♭4 (treble), B♭3 (bass).
- Landmark: treble G.
- Idea: key signatures.
The new notes
| Note | Where it sits | On the keys |
|---|---|---|
| F♯4 | The treble's bottom space, made sharp | The black key just below treble G |
| F♯5 | The treble's top line, made sharp | The black key just below high G |
| F♯3 | The bass staff's fourth line (bass F), made sharp | The black key just above bass F |
| B♭4 | The treble's middle line, made flat | The black key just below B |
| B♭3 | The space above the bass staff, made flat | The black key just below the B under middle C |
A sharp or flat doesn't move the note on the staff. Same line or space; a different key.
The sittings, in order
The key of G
- Key signatures (concept). The sharp on the F line means every F is F sharp, in every octave. You play the G major scale.
- Meet F sharp. The black key just below G, in both clefs.
- Cards in G. Only notes that belong to G major.
- Read in G. Pages written in G.
- Use it: Minuet in G. The first half of the famous minuet from the Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach: the first real piece in a key.
- Use it: Schumann, Of Foreign Lands and Peoples (melody). The first of his Scenes from Childhood, in G.
The key of F
- Meet B flat. The black key just below B: the treble's middle line, the space above the bass.
- Cards in F. Only notes in F major.
- Read in F.
- Use it: Yankee Doodle. In F.
More music, and review
- Schumann, Chorale, with bass. A hymn in G.
- Schumann, Humming Song, with bass.
- Schumann, Soldiers' March (melody).
- Schumann, The Happy Farmer (melody). In F: every B is B flat.
- Strauss, The Blue Danube (theme, both hands).
- Mix. In G and in F: play it, name it, find it on the staff.
- Checkpoint. In C, G and F.
Teaching notes
- F♯4, F♯5 and F♯3 are F's space or line made sharp: the black key just below G. G major's key signature draws its sharp on the top line (F5), and it holds for every F.
- B♭4 and B♭3 are B's line or space made flat: the black key just below B. F major's signature draws its flat on the middle line.
- Look at the key signature before the first note, every time.
- Notes in a key. Cards in G never show an F natural, and cards in F never show a B natural, so your hand learns the key's shape.
Common mistakes
- F natural in G. The sharp isn't written again next to the note. It is the commonest slip in this unit.
- Thinking a sharp moves the note on the staff. It doesn't: same line, different key.
- Forgetting the left hand. The bass Fs are sharp in G too, and the bass Bs flat in F.
Related guides
Next: Unit 11 — Chords. Back to the whole path.
Songs in this unit
- Minuet in G major, BWV Anh. 114
- Of Foreign Lands and Peoples (Kinderszenen), Op. 15 No. 1
- Yankee Doodle
- Chorale (Album for the Young), Op. 68 No. 4
- Humming Song (Album for the Young), Op. 68 No. 3
- Soldiers' March (Album for the Young), Op. 68 No. 2
- The Happy Farmer, Op. 68 No. 10
- The Blue Danube (main theme), Op. 314