In Episode 013: Magic Wand Part 1, we discussed the first part of the Magic Wand, seven major keys, which is useful for students taking the Level 3 and Level 4 Texas Music Teachers Association theory exam. In Episode 023: Magic Wand Part 2, we extended the original 7 keys (F C G D A E B)  to include all the major keys, from C♭ with 7 flats to C♯ with 7 sharps. This information is helpful for students testing at Level 5 and Level 6. It all starts with a goofy sentence about a Fat Cat:

Fat Cats Go Down Alleys Eating Bacon

This is the sentence used to start the whole process of drawing the Magic Wand; it will also be useful for remembering the order or sharps/flats.  When drawing the Magic Wand on a scratch sheet of paper, students are instructed to draw a rectangle around these seven letters. (See step 2 on the Magic Wand free resource sheet.) This box serves two purposes:

 1. To remember which keys do not require a sharp or flat as part of their name.

Anything inside the box uses that letter only as the name of the key.

Any letters written outside the box and to the right, require a sharp as part of the name: F♯, C♯ (think “sharps go to the right” just like they do on the piano keys.)

Any letters written outside the box and to the left, require a flat as part of the name: B♭, E♭, A♭, etc. (think “flats go to the left” just like they do on the piano keys.)

2. To remember the order of sharps and flats as they occur in a key signature.

Order of Sharps (♯) starting with F and reading to the right: FCGDAEB

Order of Flats (♭) starting with B and reading to the left: BEADGCF

Use the Magic Wand to identify major and relative minor key signatures:

Identifying Major and minor keys and their corresponding sharps/flats is easy with the Magic Wand!

1. Notice the number of flats listed at the beginning of a piece or on a theory test question.
2. For example, two flats (♭) listed after a treble clef sign.
3. Look on your Magic Wand to find the number two. Be sure to look on the left portion of the Magic Wand because flats go the left.
4. The first letter below the number two is B♭.  This is the key of B♭ Major.
5. The next letter below the number two is g. This represents the key of g minor.
6. Every key signature represents a Major or minor key.

1. What if there are six sharps (♯) listed listed as a theory test questions?
2. Look on your Magic Wand to find the number six.  There are two number sixes on the Magic Wand, we want the one to the right of C because sharps go to the right.
3. The first letter below that number six is F♯. This is the key of F♯ Major.
4. The next letter below the number six is d#. This is the key of d# minor.

Use the Magic Wand to create chord patterns:

You can use the Magic Wand to create your own music and chord patterns!

1. Choose any letter from the Major portion of the Magic Wand.  This letter becomes your tonic or home key. For this example, I chose F. F is my tonic or the first note of the F major scale. We use it to create the I triad.
2. The letter to the left of F is B♭.  B♭ is my subdominant or fourth note of the F major scale. We use it to build the IV chord.
3. The letter to the right of F is C. C is my dominant or the fifth note of the F major scale. We use it to build the V chord.
4. These three chords are called the Primary triads.  Many, many songs can be composed using only the tonic, dominant, and subdominant.

With the use of relative minor keys, composers are able to add much more variety and ‘color’ to their music.

1. By including the letters directly under each of the Major letters, you are able to add even more interest to your music.
2. Under the F is d. Under the B♭ is g. Under the C is a.
3. These create the secondary triads.
4. Going from the Major chord to the minor chord directly below it (and vice versa) creates a very pleasant sound because the two chords share two notes between them. (The F Major triad uses F – A – C and the d minor triad uses d – f – a.  Because they both use F and A, the transition from one to the other is quite nice.)

Use this worksheet to create your own chord progressions using Major and minor chords taken directly from your Magic Wand.

Hook Theory is a fun website to explore thousands of songs and the chord progressions they use.

Hope this helps you and good luck on the theory test!!