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Hints for Spelling Major and Minor Thirds |
| Look at a piano keyboard. If you remain on the white keys (no accidentals) you will notice that some thirds have 2 black notes between the upper and lower white keys, while some have only one. Those with 2 (F-A, G-B, and C-E) are the major thirds. All others have only one black key between them and are minor thirds. |
| Staying on all white keys C-E, F-A, and G-B are all major thirds, the others are all minor thirds. |
| Sharps move a note up, flats move it down. Always think in terms of moving towards or away from the other note. Moving the upper note up makes a larger interval, while moving the lower note up makes a smaller interval. Moving both notes in the same direction doesn't change the interval. |
| If you know your key signatures, any time the upper note is in the major key of the lower note it is a major third. (i.e. C-E: There are no sharps or flats in the key of C major, so E is in the key of C major, so C-E is a major third.) |