Its relative minor is F minor. Its parallel minor, A-flat minor, is usually written instead as the enharmonic key of G-sharp minor, since A-flat minor contains seven flats and G-sharp minor only contains five sharps, making A-flat minor rarely usable. Its enharmonic, G-sharp major, with eight sharps, including the F, has a similar problem, and so A-flat major is often used as the parallel major for G-sharp minor. (The same enharmonic situation also occurs with the keys of D-flat major and C-sharp minor.)
Since A-flat major was rarely chosen as the main key for orchestral works of the 18th century, passages or movements in the key often retained the timpani settings of the preceding movement. For example, Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 has the timpani set to C and G for the first movement. With hand-tuned timpani, there is no time to re-tune the timpani to A-flat and E-flat for the slow second movement in A-flat major; accordingly, the timpani in this movement are reserved for the passages in C major. In Bruckner's Symphony No. 1 in C minor, however, the timpani are re-tuned between the first movement in C minor and the following in A-flat major.
Charles-Marie Widor considered A-flat major to be the second best key for flute music.[1]
A-flat major was the flattest major key to be used as the home key for the keyboard and piano sonatas of Domenico Scarlatti, Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven, with each of them using the key for two sonatas: Scarlatti's K. 127 and K. 130, Haydn's Hob XVI 43 and 46, and Beethoven's Op. 26 and Op. 110, while Franz Schubert used it for one piano sonata. It was also the flattest major key to be used for the preludes and fugues in Johann Sebastian Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, as flatter major keys were notated as their enharmonic equivalents.
^Charles-Marie Widor, Manual of Practical Instrumentation translated by Edward Suddard, revised edition. London: Joseph Williams (1946) Reprinted Mineola, New York: Dover (2005): 11. "No key suits it [the flute] better than D-flat [major]. ... A-flat [major] is likewise an excellent key."
External links
Media related to A-flat major at Wikimedia Commons
January 20, 2023
flat, major, flat, major, scale, based, with, pitches, signature, four, flats, relative, keyf, minorparallel, keya, flat, minordominant, keye, flat, majorsubdominantd, flat, majorcomponent, pitchesa, gthe, scale, source, audio, playback, supported, your, brows. A flat major or the key of A flat is a major scale based on A with the pitches A B C D E F and G Its key signature has four flats A flat majorRelative keyF minorParallel keyA flat minorDominant keyE flat majorSubdominantD flat majorComponent pitchesA B C D E F GThe A flat major scale is source Audio playback is not supported in your browser You can download the audio file Its relative minor is F minor Its parallel minor A flat minor is usually written instead as the enharmonic key of G sharp minor since A flat minor contains seven flats and G sharp minor only contains five sharps making A flat minor rarely usable Its enharmonic G sharp major with eight sharps including the F has a similar problem and so A flat major is often used as the parallel major for G sharp minor The same enharmonic situation also occurs with the keys of D flat major and C sharp minor Compositions in A flat major EditSee also List of symphonies in A flat major Beethoven chose A flat major as the key of the slow movement for most of his C minor works a practice which Anton Bruckner imitated in his first two C minor symphonies and also Antonin Dvorak in his only C minor symphony The second movement of Haydn s 43rd symphony in E flat major is in A flat major Frederic Chopin used this key in many of his works particularly in his waltzes Since A flat major was rarely chosen as the main key for orchestral works of the 18th century passages or movements in the key often retained the timpani settings of the preceding movement For example Beethoven s Symphony No 5 has the timpani set to C and G for the first movement With hand tuned timpani there is no time to re tune the timpani to A flat and E flat for the slow second movement in A flat major accordingly the timpani in this movement are reserved for the passages in C major In Bruckner s Symphony No 1 in C minor however the timpani are re tuned between the first movement in C minor and the following in A flat major Charles Marie Widor considered A flat major to be the second best key for flute music 1 A flat major was the flattest major key to be used as the home key for the keyboard and piano sonatas of Domenico Scarlatti Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven with each of them using the key for two sonatas Scarlatti s K 127 and K 130 Haydn s Hob XVI 43 and 46 and Beethoven s Op 26 and Op 110 while Franz Schubert used it for one piano sonata It was also the flattest major key to be used for the preludes and fugues in Johann Sebastian Bach s Well Tempered Clavier as flatter major keys were notated as their enharmonic equivalents Felix Mendelssohn Johann Nepomuk Hummel John Field and Friedrich Kalkbrenner each wrote one piano concerto in A flat Mendelssohn s being for two pianos they had the horns and trumpet tuned to E flat Max Bruch s Concerto for Two Pianos in A flat minor has its last movement in A flat major which is the parallel major this concerto plays with the contrast between the two keys Scott Joplin s Maple Leaf Rag is also written in A flat major the trio part of the composition is written in D flat major Other compositions in A flat major include Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Sonata No 12 Piano Sonata No 31 Frederic Chopin Polonaise Fantaisie Op 61 Heroic Polonaise Op 53 Ballade No 3 Op 47 Etude Op 25 No 1 Nocturne Op 32 No 2 Prelude Op 28 No 17 Waltz Op 34 No 1 Waltz Op 42 Waltz Op 64 No 3 Waltz Op 69 No 1 Mazurka Op 59 No 2 Mazurka Op 50 No 2 Impromptu No 1 Op 29 Antonin Dvorak String Quartet No 14 Edward Elgar Symphony No 1 Franz Liszt Transcendental Etude No 9 Ricordanza Au bord d une source from Annees de Pelerinage No 1 Elegie sur des motifs du Prince Louis Ferdinand de Prusse S 168 No 1 and 3 of the Liebestraume S 541 Felix Mendelssohn Second Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra Lieder ohne Worte Op 38 6 and Op 53 1 Ferdinand Ries Piano concerto no 8 Op 151 Gruss an den Rhein Franz Schubert Impromptu No 2 Op 142 Dmitri Shostakovich String Quartet No 10 Op 118References Edit Charles Marie Widor Manual of Practical Instrumentation translated by Edward Suddard revised edition London Joseph Williams 1946 Reprinted Mineola New York Dover 2005 11 No key suits it the flute better than D flat major A flat major is likewise an excellent key External links Edit Media related to A flat major at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title A flat major amp oldid 1119516413, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
