Which key??

[Tony John Hearne]

Having just listened to a spine chilling account of Prokofiev’s third symphony in C minor (Valery Gergiev and the LSO – very highly recommended) my ever restless mind got to wonder how and why composers choose a particular key when setting out to write a piece of music?


Speaking as nothing more than an enthusiastic amateur who is wholly passionate about Classical music but can’t read a note, why would one key be chosen rather than another?

Any answers out there?

[Chris]

There could be a variety of reasons. There are practical matters, such as the range of the instruments or singers, and the fingerings that will be required on the instruments. Also, some composers associate different keys with different moods; this was even more true in the past when temperment was not even as it usually is today, and different keys actually had subtle differences.

[Preston]

I have wondered this too.

Does writing in a key not have something to do with musicality and correct form of writing classical music?

[DavidO]

Aside from the logistical reasons that Chris cited (range & fingering of various instruments involved), I think the reasons underlying a composer's choice of key are usually less pragmatic & more personal (aesthetic & psychological).

For example, there are all sorts of analyses of the deeply personal meaning that C minor may have had for Beethoven. Wiki has a nice writeup on this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beethoven_and_C_minor

[Peter]

Yes keys were used often to depict certain moods. D major and C major are very bright keys and were often used for ceremonial music - these were also the most practical keys for trumpets and horns. Beethoven regarded B minor as a very black key and actually it is quite rare in his music. Ab major is a very warm lyrical key, think of op.26 and Op.110, Schubert's Impromptus in that key and Bach's Ab Fugue from Book I.

[Sorrano]

The Benedictus of the Misa Solemnis is a great example of the stark differences between the b minor and the D Major and a listening might shed some light on why Beethoven used those respective keys. Also, some composers have visualized specific colors related to specific keys. For example, for me D Major is a bright yellow. But this is certainly not true of all.

[Hofrat]

Beethoven was severely criticized for the key he composed the so-called "Moonlight" sonata: C# minor. As a matter of fact, only two symphonies were composed in that key in the 18th century. One of them was by the Swedish court composer Joseph Martin Kraus, and he was compelled to write a revised edition of that symphony in a more managible key of C-minor.

[Peter]

Beethoven was severely criticized for the key he composed the so-called "Moonlight" sonata: C# minor. As a matter of fact, only two symphonies were composed in that key in the 18th century. One of them was by the Swedish court composer Joseph Martin Kraus, and he was compelled to write a revised edition of that symphony in a more managible key of C-minor.

I don't recall reading that Hofrat - after all Haydn had written a sonata in C# minor and Bach a couple of preludes and fugues (he of course went further with the horrendous C# major!)

[Peter]

The Benedictus of the Misa Solemnis is a great example of the stark differences between the b minor and the D Major and a listening might shed some light on why Beethoven used those respective keys. Also, some composers have visualized specific colors related to specific keys. For example, for me D Major is a bright yellow. But this is certainly not true of all.

Scriabin (in conjunction with Kandinsky) is the composer who took this to new limits with his theories on colour and key.

[Hofrat]

Dear Peter;

I refer you to Timothy Jones' *Beethoven: The "Moonlight" and other sonatas, opus 27 and 31* from the series Cambridge music handbooks. In the section on reception and critique, the music critics in Beethoven's time called C#-minor a "horrible key!"

[Peter]

Dear Peter;

I refer you to Timothy Jones' *Beethoven: The "Moonlight" and other sonatas, opus 27 and 31* from the series Cambridge music handbooks. In the section on reception and critique, the music critics in Beethoven's time called C#-minor a "horrible key!"

Thanks for the reference Hofrat - as I mentioned it was a curious attack to level at Beethoven (if specific to the Moonlight) since Haydn himself had published a sonata in that key in 1780. Haydn was quite adventurous in his key choices and we have symphonies in the unusual (for the time) keys of E minor, F# minor and B major.

[Hofrat]

I just received a wonderful CD produced by Toccata Classics entitled "Schubert and his Circle," featuring some unheard pieces by Schubert and the Huttenbrenner brothers. One of the pieces is a "Dance of the Furies" by Joseph Huttenbrenner (1819). In the manuscript, the dance is written in two versions: C#-minor and C-minor! This dovetails with an earlier posting where I mentioned that the key of C#-minor was not easy to manage and on occasion "re-tooled" in C-minor for easier performance. Brahms' piano quartet in C-minor started out as a work in C#-minor.

Under separate cover, I will write about the CD.

[Peter]

I just received a wonderful CD produced by Toccata Classics entitled "Schubert and his Circle," featuring some unheard pieces by Schubert and the Huttenbrenner brothers. One of the pieces is a "Dance of the Furies" by Joseph Huttenbrenner (1819). In the manuscript, the dance is written in two versions: C#-minor and C-minor! This dovetails with an earlier posting where I mentioned that the key of C#-minor was not easy to manage and on occasion "re-tooled" in C-minor for easier performance. Brahms' piano quartet in C-minor started out as a work in C#-minor.

Under separate cover, I will write about the CD.

That reminds me - the 4th Schubert Moments Musicaux is also in C# minor!

[Hofrat]

Peter;

The CD that I received also features a German dance D.643 in C# minor amongst other things by Schubert.