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A major

{{Short description|Major key and scale based on the note A}}

{{Infobox musical scale

| name=A major
{ \magnifyStaff #3/2 \omit Score.TimeSignature \key a \major s16 \clef F \key a \major s^"" }

| relative=F-sharp minor

| parallel=A minor

| dominant=E major

| subdominant=D major

| first_pitch=A

| second_pitch=B

| third_pitch=C{{music|sharp}}

| fourth_pitch=D

| fifth_pitch=E

| sixth_pitch=F{{music|sharp}}

| seventh_pitch=G{{music|sharp}}

}}

A major is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C♯ (musical note), D, E, F♯ (musical note), and G♯ (musical note). Its key signature has three sharps. Its relative minor is F-sharp minor and its parallel minor is A minor.

The A major scale is:

{{block indent|

\header { tagline = ##f }

scale = \relative a { \key a \major \omit Score.TimeSignature

a'^"A natural major scale" b cis d e fis gis a gis fis e d cis b a2 \clef F \key a \major }

\score { { << \cadenzaOn \scale \context NoteNames \scale >> } \layout { } \midi { } }

}}

Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale are written in with accidentals as necessary. The A harmonic major and melodic major scales are:

{{block indent|

\header { tagline = ##f }

scale = \relative a { \key a \major \omit Score.TimeSignature

a'^"A harmonic major scale" b cis d e f gis a gis f! e d cis b a2 \clef F \key a \major }

\score { { << \cadenzaOn \scale \context NoteNames \scale >> } \layout { } \midi { } }

}}

{{block indent|

\header { tagline = ##f }

scale = \relative a { \key a \major \omit Score.TimeSignature

a'^"A melodic major scale" b cis d e fis gis a g f e d cis b a2 \clef F \key a \major }

\score { { << \cadenzaOn \scale \context NoteNames \scale >> } \layout { } \midi { } }

}}

In the treble, alto, and bass clefs, the G{{music|sharp}} in the key signature is placed higher than C{{music|sharp}}. However, in the tenor clef, it would require a ledger line and so G{{music|sharp}} is placed lower than C{{music|sharp}}.

Scale degree chords

The scale degree chords of A major are:

History

Although not as rare in the symphonic literature as sharper keys (those containing more than three sharps), symphonies in A major are less common than in keys with fewer sharps such as D major or G major. Beethoven's Symphony No. 7, Bruckner's Symphony No. 6 and Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4 comprise a nearly complete list of symphonies in this key in the Romantic era. Mozart's Clarinet Concerto and Clarinet Quintet are both in A major, along with his 23rd Piano Concerto, and generally Mozart was more likely to use clarinets in A major than in any other key besides E-flat major.{{cite journal|author=Mark Anson-Cartwright |title=Chromatic Features of E{{music|flat}}-Major Works of the Classical Period|journal=Music Theory Spectrum|volume=22|issue= 2 |year=2000|page= 178|jstor=745959}} Moreover, the climax part of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto is also in A major.

The key of A occurs frequently in chamber music and other music for strings, which favor sharp keys. Franz Schubert's Trout Quintet and Antonín Dvořák's Piano Quintet No. 2 are both in A major. Johannes Brahms, César Franck, and Gabriel Fauré wrote violin sonatas in A major. In connection to Beethoven's Kreutzer Sonata, Peter Cropper said that A major "is the fullest sounding key for the violin."Peter Cropper, "Beethoven's Violin Sonata in A major, Op.47 'Kreutzer': First Movement", The Strad, March 2009, p. 64

According to Christian Friedrich Daniel Schubart, A major is a key suitable for "declarations of innocent love, ... hope of seeing one's beloved again when parting; youthful cheerfulness and trust in God."Rita Steblin (1996) A History of Key Characteristics in the Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Centuries, University of Rochester Press, p. 123, {{ISBN|0835714187}}.

For orchestral works in A major, the timpani are typically set to A and E a fifth apart, rather than a fourth apart as for most other keys. Hector Berlioz complained about the custom of his day in which timpani tuned to A and E a fifth apart were notated C and G a fourth apart, a custom which survived as late as the music of Franz Berwald.Norman Del Mar (1981). Anatomy of the Orchestra, University of California Press, p. 349, {{ISBN|0520045009}}.

Notable compositions in A major

{{See also|List of symphonies in A major}}

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See also

References

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External links

  • {{commons category-inline}}

{{Circle of fifths}}

Category:Musical keys

Category:Major scales