ABRSM Grade 5 Theory Keys and Scales: Section 3, Step by Step

By Michael Q. Klein

Keys and scales are Section 3 of the ABRSM Grade 5 Theory exam: 14 questions worth 15 marks, a fifth of the whole paper. They're also the foundation under almost everything else: you can't name an interval's quality, label a chord or transpose a melody without knowing your scales. This guide is part of how to pass ABRSM Grade 5 Theory.

The seven keys and scales questions in the exam

What you see on screen:

• 3.1–3.2 Key signatures: a key is named, e.g. "G flat major", and you choose between four key signatures, often each in a different clef (treble, bass, alto or tenor). The wrong ones usually have every sharp or flat present, but one is in the wrong octave or the wrong order.
• 3.3 Key of a melody: a short melody with no key signature, so every sharp and flat is written in as an accidental. You choose from four keys, typically a major key, its relative minor and two near neighbours.
• 3.4 Complete a scale: a named scale, going up or down, in any clef, with two notes left out. You pick X and Y from drop-down lists.
• 3.5 Clef for a minor scale: eight notes on a stave with no clef. Only one of the four clefs makes them a minor scale.
• 3.6 Chromatic scales: a chromatic scale, and you decide whether it's correctly written.
• 3.7 Technical names: one note on a stave and a statement such as "This is the submediant in C sharp minor". True or false.

All seven come down to the same three skills: key signatures, scale patterns and degree names.

Step 1: Key signatures (3.1 and 3.2)

The order is always the same

• Sharps: F C G D A E B
• Flats: B E A D G C F (the sharps backwards)

A key with three sharps has the first three: F♯, C♯ and G♯. A key with four flats has the first four: B♭, E♭, A♭ and D♭. There are no exceptions.

From key signature to key

• Sharps: the major key is a semitone above the last sharp. Last sharp G♯, so A major.
• Flats: the major key is the second-to-last flat. Flats B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭, so A♭ major. (One flat is the only one to learn by heart: F major.)
• Minor: every major key shares its key signature with its relative minor, which starts on the 6th note of the major scale (three semitones below the tonic). A major's relative minor is F♯ minor.

At Grade 5 you need every key up to six sharps or flats:

Where each sharp and flat goes

This is what 3.1 and 3.2 really test. In the exam, the wrong options usually have the right number of sharps or flats, but one of them sits an octave too high or low, or two have swapped places. So learn the shape of each key signature, not just its contents:

• Sharps zigzag: up, down, up, down. In the treble clef F♯ is on the top line, C♯ in the third space, G♯ in the space above the stave.
• Flats zigzag the other way: down, up, down, up. In the treble clef B♭ is on the middle line, E♭ in the top space, A♭ in the second space.
• Bass and alto clefs use the same shapes, just moved to their own lines and spaces.
• The tenor clef is the odd one out for sharps. If F♯ went at the top as usual, it would sit above the stave, so it's written low, on the second line up, and the zigzag climbs from there.

The check for each option: right order, right number, and every sharp or flat on the right line or space for that clef.

Step 2: The key of a melody (3.3)

There's no key signature, so the accidentals are your clues:

1. List every sharp and flat in the melody.
2. Find the key signature that contains them. That gives you two candidates: a major key and its relative minor.
3. Look for the raised 7th of the minor key. If it's there, the melody is minor. In a minor key the 7th note is raised by an accidental (the leading note); in melodic minor the 6th is raised too.
4. Check the end. Melodies almost always end on the tonic, and often outline the tonic chord.

Example. This melody uses B♭, E♭ and F♯:

B♭ and E♭ are the key signature of B♭ major or G minor. F♯ is the raised 7th of G minor, and the melody ends on G. So it's G minor. G major would fit the F♯, but not the B♭ or E♭.

Watch out: a short melody doesn't always use every note of the key. A melody with only B♭ and E♭ could be in B♭ major, or in E♭ major if no A appears at all. When that happens, let the ending and the shape of the melody decide.

Step 3: Complete a scale (3.4)

This is the only 2-mark question in the section: 1 mark for X and 1 for Y. The scale is named for you, so:

1. Read the given notes in the clef shown. It can be any of the four clefs.
2. Check the direction. Scales can go up or down.
3. Write the letters out in order, then add the key's sharps or flats.
4. For a minor scale, check which form it is. Harmonic minor raises the 7th both ways. Melodic minor raises the 6th and 7th going up, and lowers them again going down.

Example: E♭ major going up, in the bass clef.

The letters are E F G A B C D E, and E♭ major has B♭, E♭ and A♭. So X is G and Y is D, both natural.

The most common mistake here is the melodic minor going down. A descending melodic minor uses the plain key signature notes, so the 6th and 7th are not raised. D minor going down is D C B♭ A G F E D, with no C♯ or B♮.

Step 4: The clef for a minor scale (3.5)

You see eight notes but no clef. Try each clef in turn:

1. Read the first note in that clef. That's the tonic of the possible minor scale.
2. Read the rest and check the pattern. A harmonic minor has a raised 7th and a big gap (an augmented 2nd) between the 6th and 7th. A melodic minor has a raised 6th and 7th going up.
3. The printed accidentals must land in exactly the right places. In the wrong clef they fall on the wrong degrees, and the scale stops making sense.

Example. These noteheads start on the bottom line, with sharps on the 2nd and 7th notes:

• Treble clef: E F♯ G A B C D♯ E. That's E harmonic minor, so treble is the answer.
• Bass clef: the same noteheads read G A♯ B C D E F♯ G. G to A♯ is an augmented 2nd straight away, so it can't be a minor scale.
• Alto and tenor clefs: F G♯ A B C D E♯ F and D E♯ F G A B C♯ D. Neither one is a minor scale.

The quickest check is the first three notes: in every minor scale they go tone, then semitone. In this example only the treble clef passes, before you've read the rest.

Step 5: Chromatic scales (3.6)

A chromatic scale moves up or down in semitones. You're shown one and decide whether it's correctly written. It's correct only if:

• all twelve semitones are there,
• every line and space has at least one note,
• no more than two notes in a row share a line or space,
• and no two notes are the same pitch spelled differently.

This question has its own full guide, with right and wrong examples: Writing chromatic scales.

Step 6: Technical names (3.7)

Each degree of the scale has a name:

Three things decide 3.7:

• Work out the scale of the key in the statement, not of the note. "This is the submediant in C♯ minor": the scale is C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A B♯, so the submediant is A.
• The accidental must match exactly. If the statement says "mediant in F minor" and the note is A natural, it's false, because the mediant of F minor is A♭.
• The octave doesn't matter. Any A is the submediant of C♯ minor, whether it's on the stave or on a ledger line.

Technical names come back in Section 7, where you count how many times a named degree appears in a real piece of music.

The mistakes I see most

• Learning key signatures as a list, not a shape. 3.1 and 3.2 test placement. Draw each key signature in all four clefs until the shapes are automatic.
• Forgetting the relative minor. Every key signature has two keys. In 3.3, check for the minor key's raised 7th before you choose the major.
• Raising the 6th and 7th going down. The descending melodic minor uses the plain key signature notes.
• Reading the clef for 3.5 from the top note. Start from the first note: it's the tonic.
• Naming degrees of the wrong key. In 3.7, build the scale of the key in the statement, then find the note in it.

Where keys and scales turn up in the rest of the exam

• 2.3 Transposition (5 marks): you check the key signature of the transposed part as well as the notes.
• Section 4, Intervals: the quality of every interval is worked out from the major scale of the lower note.
• Section 5, Chords: chord labels like Ia, IVb and Vc only make sense once you know the key and its degrees.
• Section 7, Music in Context: you count technical-name notes in a real extract and answer questions about its key.

For how the marks add up across the whole paper, read the ABRSM Grade 5 Theory pass mark.

How to practise keys and scales

• Learn it step by step in the Grade 5 Skill Builder: the order of sharps and flats, all major scales, major and minor key signatures, the relative minor, harmonic and melodic minor and technical names, each with an explanation and a test.
• Drill the exam question types in the Keys and Scales trainer, with every mistake explained.
• Check it under exam conditions in a timed mock exam, marked out of 75.

For the full preparation route, read how to pass ABRSM Grade 5 Theory.