Speaking the notes out loud is a great way to really get them into your brain, and saying the notes backwards can be quite challenging!
View the full lesson at Note Circle: Memorise Verbally | JustinGuitar
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A post was merged into an existing topic: Practical Music Theory Workbook - Grade 1
Just a question in your session you started with C at the top but in the notes it starts with A. Did I miss something somewhere?
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Probobly just because In western music we usually start with āMiddle Cā. Which is the center of written music and right in between the treble and bass cleft. It is also the top of the circle of 5ths. I also belive it would be a good excersize to be able to start with any note. A, C, G and do this excersize like in the video. As Justin describes knowing these is crazy important to know cold. Its amazingly helpful just a few lessons ahead.
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Also, when you start learning about musical keys, you will see that the key of C major is the only key without sharps or flats so itās a handy point of reference.
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Get Justin an Oscar for that mock run through
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A have a little bit of musical notes knowledge when I was doing a piano course online, so when someone says a note I remember the piano keys first and not the Note Circle. Is that a problem?
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Not a problem at all. You would know from the white keys on the piano there is no sharp or flat between B and C or between E and F. Thatās the main thing to remember.
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Iām doing this exercise tomorrow, I think itāll be fun, Iām going solo since I donāt have a jam buddy 
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Itās actually fun to do this exercise, I wonder though, how can I know if Iām saying the notes correctly?
Also, for how long I do this? Do all the possible ways for maybe 5 or 10 minutes each day?
I guess thereās no way to say the notes wrong because the exercise is about exactly saying the notes correctly 
For this type of memorizing theory exercise you donāt need to do a lot of time but you need to do it often. Something like 2 minutes in the morning, 2 minutes in the afternoon and 2 minutes in the evening.
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Should I start from C or A?
I did the exercise now starting from C because Justin starts from C. However, on the workbook
and on the website (scroll down) the Note Circle starts from A.
Another example:
This is from here.
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The reason itās a circle is so that you can start from anywhere, go 12 steps around the circle and you get back to where you started no matter where you start from.
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A good question.
The circular and nature means if you move clockwise 12 places you return to your starting position. That is true of all starting positions. Which means that each and every one of the 12 positions can be viewed as a starting position. The circle can be rotated. Or you can simply allow one note name to be at the top (the 12 oā clock position) but know that the ātopā does not necessarily mean the start.
In terms of which note is a good one to begin with in helping you to learn and understand music theory, C makes a lot of sense because the C major scale (when you learn it) has no sharp or flat notes.
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Thank you!
I practiced this starting from C, the piano āstarts from Cā as well so it makes more sense 
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Does this actually help anyone? It seems odd to make people recite, for example:
A Bb B C ...
I cannot remember how I learnt that there are accidentals between some notes and not others, but it might have just emerged from knowing the major scale pattern, which was pretty much the first thing I was shown on the bass guitar. Almost everything derives from that.
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The major scale is derived from the note circle with the formula:
Tone Tone Semitone Tone Tone Tone Semitone
Not that I would ever think about it that way. The point is the note circle is the foundation for scales.
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Itās a reasonable question to ask. You already know the Note Circle. For other people who do not yet know each and every potential note, including accidentals seen as sharp or flat, saying them out loud is a helpful way to learn.
