50
votes
Accepted
Which key signature to pick for this chord progression?
Put it in key A. That's I, and D is IV, while E is V. The slightly awkward G is said to be a borrowed chord, from, in this case, A minor, the parallel key.
It's theory, an observation, not a rule, ...
- 188k
42
votes
Why are accidentals not just indicated next to the note in sheet music to make sight reading easier?
It is related to "chunking", once you are used to keys, it is easier to quickly understand the single chunk "This piece is in G major" instead of having to see and interpret each of the individual ...
- 17.8k
42
votes
Why is more music written in sharp keys than flat keys?
It's an artifact of Spotify's analysis. Notice that this chart shows no songs written in a flat key. Therefore, without a doubt, the chart is simply using "F♯" to mean "F♯ or G♭," "A♯" to mean "A♯ or ...
- 690
37
votes
Why are accidentals not additive?
Hmm.
Lets take an example of how this would work in practice.
Currently, when I see a sharp sign in front of a note (lets say F as an example) I know that the note required is an F sharp. It may be ...
- 4,991
37
votes
Accepted
Why did we never simplify key signatures?
Actually, it seems to me that designating the key by a letter instead of the arrangement of sharps or flats is not simplifying the process. Simply stating the intended key by letter and accidental ...
- 7,730
33
votes
What does it mean when one flat in the key signature is in parenthesis?
A little-known fact is that the historical basis of minor tonality is the Dorian mode. Consequently, much 18th-century tonal music is written in a key signature that seems to lack one flat sign. ...
- 19.3k
30
votes
Accepted
Why use accidentals instead of a key signature?
There's a blog series on film scoring that I can't seem to find again right now, but in it the blogger (who composes and conducts orchestras for film scores) mentions that key signatures are never ...
- 55.6k
27
votes
Accepted
Are sharp keys "bright" and flat keys "dark"?
It certainly holds some truth, irrespective of tuning system, in the following sense: modulating to a key with more sharps evokes a “bright” sensation; modulating to more flat evokes a &...
- 35.2k
26
votes
Why have I never found any music written in the key of C Sharp Major?
C sharp major has seven sharps, D flat major has five flats. Out of the box, the latter is preferable. The former may be more appropriate when there is more material requiring "flattening" the key ...
- 261
25
votes
Accepted
Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D: Why do some recordings seem to be in C sharp?
Tuning forks, invented in 1711, standardised tuning. (A student of mine used to call them pitchforks...) Trouble was, there was no standardised pitch for the note,that came much later. So various ...
- 188k
25
votes
What is this note?
This is just D doublesharp, which is enharmonic to E.
The trick is that key signatures are not additive. In other words, any accidental added to a pitch is considered to be its own construct, not ...
- 83.5k
24
votes
Why are some instruments listed 'in F' or 'in B'?
IN orchestral (and other instrumental) music, the notation like "Clarinet in Bb" (or "Klarinette in B") means that the instrument is a "transposing instrument." When the clarinetist plays what his ...
- 24.7k
24
votes
Accepted
Can there be C# without F# in signature?
It's possible, but extremely unusual. Béla Bartók was one composer who sometimes wrote things like this. For example the study no.99 in volume IV of his collection of piano studies "Mikrokosmos&...
- 18.3k
23
votes
Why are accidentals not just indicated next to the note in sheet music to make sight reading easier?
It wouldn't be easier to read.
Firstly, most instruments are not tied into any particular key signature.
A simple sequence like someone singing/playing a scale in E major and someone else singing a ...
- 231
21
votes
Why are different keys necessary / important?
The tonal system is an historical inheritance, but we could not do without it today in the realms of most classical, popular and main stream music, even if we wanted to (and why would we want it?, ...
- 4,214
21
votes
Accepted
Is it okay to change the key signature in the middle of a bar?
It's not common to change key signature in the middle of a bar - my edition of Behind Bars says "change a key signature after a barline", with no qualifications, suggesting that's the usual ...
20
votes
Accepted
Difference between keys and scales?
[A scale is] just a bunch of notes the composer decided to use in his
music.
This is correct, or at least it's a valid way to look at it. In western music, the key chosen for a piece implies both a ...
- 55.6k
20
votes
Accepted
Reasoning for redundant "natural" (but not courtesy accidental)
The harmony of the given chord in the 1st 2 bars is in E (major chord), the accidental in front of g you consider (minor third!) is referring to this Chord of E.
- 25.6k
20
votes
Why is more music written in sharp keys than flat keys?
While there are certainly questions about how all of this data was classified, it's not surprising to me that the most popular keys tend slightly toward the sharp side (G, D, and A), with flat keys ...
- 12.4k
19
votes
Shifting between bemols (flats) and diesis (sharps)in the key signature
I'm not aware of a name for this phenomenon, it's just a quick way to transpose music based on how the tonal system works out.
In short, when you're in a key, look at the key signature. Take the ...
- 83.5k
19
votes
How to notate a non-standard hexatonic key
If you want it to be read and played, use an open key signature and accidentals.
If you want it to be analysed and discussed, maybe concoct a non-standard key signature.
- 89.6k
18
votes
Accepted
Why isn't there a key signature with F flat?
Technically, there could be, you just keep extending the pattern. You could even keep extending it to the point where you need to start using double flats, though this is almost never done in practice....
- 20.6k
18
votes
How to figure out key from key signature?
Last sharp in the key signature is the leading note (7th) of the major key. Last flat is the 4th. Or last but one is the tonic.
So three sharps - F, C and G - is A major. G♯ is the 7th note ...
- 89.6k
18
votes
Accepted
Why does music from the Classical era rarely use keys beyond 3 sharps/flats?
The primary reason was the widespread use of some type of meantone tuning. Unlike the currently popular equal temperament, different keys had chords that are somewhat out of tune. There were ...
- 24.7k
17
votes
Accepted
c#-minor Vs E-major for Moonlight Sonata
Both C# minor and E major keys have the same key signature, so there is no difference there. This relationship is called 'relative key'. Each major key has a relative minor one, with the same key ...
- 31.2k
17
votes
Why did we never simplify key signatures?
I believe it's not simplified for some reasons:
1st: Music notation is an orthodox practice which has kept its standardization globally for common understanding. The Boethian notation (alphabet notes ...
- 335
17
votes
Can there be C# without F# in signature?
You can do this, but imagine yourself in the performer's seat. If you hand out sheet music whose key signature is unfamiliar it will immediately raise questions:
Is this a misprint?
What key am I ...
- 11k
17
votes
Accepted
Sharps used in Super Mario theme
You are right, this piece is in the key of C major. There are countless songs written in C major, or any other major key that don’t use any notes outside the major scale or any chords outside the 7 ...
- 24.3k
16
votes
Accepted
Chopin Polonaise in Ab major, op 53 change in key
You're exactly right! It's technically a motion to ♭VI, which would be F♭ major. But in order to make it easier to read, he spells it in E major (♯V).
F♭ isn't in A♭ major, but it is in A♭ minor; ...
- 83.5k
16
votes
"Wrong" key signature for a score in F dorian?
Upon listening to it, F minor is the tonic chord. It does have Dorian characteristics like you say, namely a major IV chord and melodic D naturals. Is that good enough reason to write it in a key ...
- 24.3k
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