C-sharp minor
| ||
| Relative key | E major | |
|---|---|---|
| Parallel key | C♯ major | |
| Dominant key | ||
| Subdominant | ||
| Notes in this scale | ||
| C♯, D♯, E, F♯, G♯, A, B, C♯ | ||
C-sharp minor or C♯ minor is a minor scale based on C♯, with the pitches C♯, D♯, E, F♯, G♯, A, and B. Its key signature consists of four sharps (see below: Scales and keys).
Its relative major is E major, and its parallel major is C-sharp major.
Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale are written in with accidentals as necessary.
Classical music in this key
There are only two known symphonies in the 18th Century written in this key. One of them is by Joseph Martin Kraus, but he appears to have found the key difficult since he later rewrote it in C minor. Even in the following two centuries C-sharp minor symphonies remained rare. Two notable examples are Mahler's Symphony No. 5 (though only the first movement is in C-sharp minor, and the finale is actually in D major[1]) and Prokofiev's Symphony No. 7. Shostakovich's Violin Concerto No. 2 is also in C-sharp minor.
This key occurs more often in piano literature, however, from the 18th Century onwards. Domenico Scarlatti wrote just two keyboard sonatas in C-sharp minor, K. 246 and K. 247. But after Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, the key became more frequent in the piano repertoire. Beethoven himself used this key again in the outer movements of his String Quartet No. 14 (Op. 131, 1826). Even so, Johannes Brahms still felt the need to rewrite his C-sharp minor Piano Quartet in C minor, which was published as Piano Quartet No. 3 in C minor, Op. 60. One of the most famous pieces in this key is Chopin's Fantaisie-Impromptu. Other works include Chopin's Nocturnes No. 7 (Op. 27, No. 1) and No. 20 (Op. posth.), and his "Raindrop" Prelude in D-flat major (Op. 28, No. 15). Another very famous example of a work in C sharp minor is Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C-sharp minor (Op. 3, No. 2).
References
- ↑ Constantin Floros, translated by Vernon Wicker: Gustav Mahler: The Symphonies (Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press, 1985) p. 141 "the choice of key of the movements (C-sharp minor—A minor—D major—F major—D major);"