C-sharp minor: Difference between revisions

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Latest revision as of 16:33, 9 June 2025

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{{more citations needed|date=May 2025}}

'''C-sharp minor''' is a [[minor scale]] based on C-sharp, consisting of the pitches '''C-sharp''', D-sharp, '''E''', F-sharp, '''G-sharp''', A, B-sharp and '''C-sharp''' (harmonic minor scale). Its [[key signature]] consists of four sharps.

{{short description|Minor key and scale based on C-sharp}}

{{Infobox musical scale

| name = C-sharp minor<br><score>{ \magnifyStaff #3/2 \omit Score.TimeSignature \key cis \minor s16 \clef F \key cis \minor s^"" }</score>

| relative = [[E major]]

| parallel = [[C-sharp major]]

| dominant = [[G-sharp minor]]

| subdominant = [[F-sharp minor]]

| first_pitch = C{{music|sharp}}

| second_pitch = D{{music|sharp}}

| third_pitch = E

| fourth_pitch = F{{music|sharp}}

| fifth_pitch = G{{music|sharp}}

| sixth_pitch = A

| seventh_pitch = B

}}

'''C-sharp minor''' is a [[minor scale]] based on [[C♯ (musical note)|C{{music|sharp}}]], with the pitches C{{music|sharp}}, [[D♯ (musical note)|D{{music|sharp}}]], [[E (musical note)|E]], [[F♯ (musical note)|F{{music|sharp}}]], [[G♯ (musical note)|G{{music|sharp}}]], [[A (musical note)|A]], and [[B (musical note)|B]]. Its [[key signature]] consists of four [[Sharp (music)|sharps]].

The C-sharp [[natural minor scale]] is:

[[Image:E Major key signature.png]]

{{block indent|<score sound raw>

Its [[relative key|relative major]] is [[E major]], and its [[parallel key|parallel major]] is [[C-sharp major]].

\header { tagline = ##f }

scale = \relative b { \key cis \minor \omit Score.TimeSignature

cis^"C♯ natural minor scale" dis e fis gis a b cis b a gis fis e dis cis2 \clef F \key cis \minor }

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

</score>}}

Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale are written in with accidentals as necessary.

Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale are written in with accidentals as necessary. The C-sharp [[Harmonic minor scale|harmonic minor]] and [[melodic minor scale]]s are:

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 [[Gustav Mahler|Mahler]]'s [[Symphony No. 5 (Mahler)|Symphony No. 5]] and [[Sergei Prokofiev|Prokofiev]]'s Symphony No. 7.

{{block indent|<score sound raw>

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.

\header { tagline = ##f }

scale = \relative b { \key cis \minor \omit Score.TimeSignature

cis^"C♯ harmonic minor scale" dis e fis gis a bis cis bis! a gis fis e dis cis2 \clef F \key cis \minor }

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

</score>}}

{{block indent|<score sound raw>

\header { tagline = ##f }

scale = \relative b { \key cis \minor \omit Score.TimeSignature

cis^"C♯ melodic minor scale" dis e fis gis ais bis cis b? a? gis fis e dis cis2 \clef F \key cis \minor }

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

</score>}}

Its [[relative key|relative major]] is [[E major]]. Its [[parallel key|parallel major]], [[C-sharp major]], is usually written instead as the enharmonic key of [[D-flat major]], since C-sharp major’s key signature with seven sharps is not normally used. Its enharmonic equivalent, [[D-flat minor]], having eight flats including the B{{music|doubleflat}}, has a similar problem. Therefore, C-sharp minor is often used as the parallel minor for D-flat major. (The same enharmonic situation occurs with the keys of [[A-flat major]] and [[G-sharp minor]], and in some cases, with the keys of [[G-flat major]] and [[F-sharp minor]].)

==Well Known Songs In This Key==

*'''[[Barbie Girl]]''' -[[Aqua]]

*'''[[California Dreamin']]''' -[[The Mamas and the Papas]]

*'''[[Moonlight Sonata]]''' -[[Ludwig van Beethoven]]

*'''Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2''' -[[Franz Liszt]]

*'''[[Oops I Did It Again]] -[[Britney Spears]]

==Scale degree chords==

{{Circle of fifths}}

The [[scale degree]] chords of C-sharp minor are:

* [[Tonic (music)|Tonic]] – C-sharp minor

* [[Supertonic]] – [[Diminished triad|D-sharp diminished]]

* [[Mediant]] – [[E major]]

* [[Subdominant]] – [[F-sharp minor]]

* [[Dominant (music)|Dominant]] – [[G-sharp minor]]

* [[Submediant]] – [[A major]]

* [[Subtonic]] – [[B major]]

==Classical music in this key==

{{music-theory-stub}}

{{see also|List of symphonies in C-sharp minor}}

There are only two known symphonies in the 18th century written in this key. One of them is by [[Joseph Martin Kraus]], who appears to have found the key difficult since he later rewrote it in [[C minor]]. In the following two centuries, C-sharp minor symphonies remained rare. Notable examples are the second movement Adagio of [[Anton Bruckner]]'s [[Symphony No. 7 (Bruckner)|Symphony No. 7]], the first movement of [[Gustav Mahler]]'s [[Symphony No. 5 (Mahler)|Symphony No. 5]]<ref>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);" - however, Mahler did not apply any key to the 5th symphony as a whole</ref> and [[Sergei Prokofiev|Prokofiev]]'s [[Symphony No. 7 (Prokofiev)|Symphony No. 7]].

This key occurs more often in piano literature from the 18th century onwards. [[Domenico Scarlatti]] wrote just two keyboard sonatas in C-sharp minor, K. 246 and K. 247. After [[Ludwig van Beethoven|Beethoven]]'s [[Piano Sonata No. 14 (Beethoven)|Piano Sonata No. 14]] (''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 (Beethoven)|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 (Brahms)|Piano Quartet No. 3 in C minor, Op. 60]].{{citation needed|date=March 2020}} The last intermezzo from his [[Three Intermezzi for piano, Op. 117 (Brahms)|Three Intermezzi for piano, Op. 117]] is in C-sharp minor.

[[Category:Musical keys]]

[[Charles-Valentin Alkan|Alkan]] composed the second movement (Adagio) for [[Concerto for Solo Piano (Alkan)|Concerto for Solo Piano]] in C-sharp minor.

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[[Frédéric Chopin]] often wrote in this key: examples include the [[Fantaisie-Impromptu]], [[Études (Chopin)|Études]] [[Étude Op. 10, No. 4 (Chopin)|Op. 10, No. 4]] and [[Étude Op. 25, No. 7 (Chopin)|Op. 25, No. 7]], [[Scherzo No. 3 (Chopin)|Scherzo No. 3 (Op. 39)]], [[Waltz in C-sharp minor, Op. 64, No. 2 (Chopin)|Waltz Op. 64, No. 2]], [[Polonaises, Op. 26 (Chopin)|Polonaise Op. 26 No. 1]], the [[Preludes (Chopin)|Prelude opus 45]] and Nocturnes [[Nocturnes, Op. 27 (Chopin)|No. 7 (Op. 27, No. 1)]] and [[Nocturne in C-sharp minor, Op. posth. (Chopin)|No. 20 (''Lento con gran espressione'')]]. More examples of works in C-sharp minor include [[Sergei Rachmaninoff|Rachmaninoff's]] [[Prelude in C-sharp minor (Rachmaninoff)|Prelude in C-sharp minor (Op. 3, No. 2)]], [[Alexander Scriabin|Scriabin's]] [[Étude in C-sharp minor, Op. 2, No. 1 (Scriabin)|Étude in C-sharp minor, Op. 2, No. 1]], [[Franz Liszt|Franz Liszt's]] [[Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2]], and [[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky|Tchaikovsky's]] [[Piano Sonata in C-sharp minor (Tchaikovsky)|Piano Sonata in C-sharp minor]].

[[de:Cis-Moll]]

[[ja:嬰ハ短調]]

Piano concertos written in C-sharp minor include [[Francis Poulenc|Poulenc]]'s [[Piano Concerto (Poulenc)|Piano Concerto in C-sharp minor, FP 146]] (1949), [[Erich Wolfgang Korngold]]'s [[Piano Concerto for the Left Hand (Korngold)|Piano Concerto for the Left Hand]], Op. 17, [[Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov]]'s [[Piano Concerto (Rimsky-Korsakov)|Piano Concerto]], and others by [[Ferdinand Ries]], [[Xaver Scharwenka]], [[Amy Beach]], [[Miriam Hyde]] and [[Issay Dobrowen]].

[[pl:Cis-moll]]

[[ru:До-диез минор]]

[[Franz Berwald]] and [[Violin Concerto No. 2 (Shostakovich)|Dimitri Shostakovich]] wrote violin concertos in C-sharp minor.

[[Jules Van Nuffel]] wrote his psalm setting {{lang|la|[[In convertendo Dominus (Nuffel)|In convertendo Dominus]]}} for choir and organ in C-sharp minor.

<!-- Please only add songs if:

1) they are notable, and

2) have sources for being exclusively in C-sharp minor.

==Notable songs==

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== See also ==

* [[Key (music)]]

* [[Major and minor]]

* [[Chord (music)]]

* [[Chord notation]]

* [[D flat minor]]

== References ==

{{Reflist}}

==External links==

*{{Commons category-inline|C-sharp minor}}

{{Circle of fifths}}

[[Category:Musical keys]]

[[Category:Minor scales]]

[[Category:Compositions in C-sharp minor| ]]