C major (or the key of C) is a

major scale The major scale (or Ionian mode) is one of the most commonly used musical scales, especially in Western music. It is one of the diatonic scales. Like many musical scales, it is made up of seven notes: the eighth duplicates the first at doub ...

based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common

keys Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (m ...

used in music. Its key signature has no

flats Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...

or sharps. Its relative minor is

A minor A minor is a minor scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has no flats and no sharps. Its relative major is C major and its parallel major is A major. The A natural minor scale is: : Changes ...

and its parallel minor is C minor. The C major scale is: : On the piano, the C major scale can be played by playing only the white keys starting on C.

Compositions

Twenty of

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have le ...

's 106 symphonies are in C major, making it his second most-used key, second to D major. Of the 134 symphonies mistakenly attributed to Haydn that

H. C. Robbins Landon Howard Chandler Robbins Landon (March 6, 1926November 20, 2009) was an American musicologist, journalist, historian and broadcaster, best known for his work in rediscovering the huge body of neglected music by Haydn and in correcting misundersta ...

lists in his catalog, 33 are in C major, more than any other key. Before the invention of the valves, Haydn did not write

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

and

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionall ...

parts in his symphonies, except those in C major. Landon writes that it wasn't "until 1774 that Haydn uses trumpets and timpani in a key other than C major... and then only sparingly." Most of Haydn's symphonies in C major are labelled "festive" and are of a primarily celebratory mood. Wilfrid Mellers believed that

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

's Symphony No. 41, written in 'white' C major, "represented the triumph of light". (See also List of symphonies in C major.) Many masses and settings of the ''

Te Deum The "Te Deum" (, ; from its incipit, , ) is a Latin Christian hymn traditionally ascribed to AD 387 authorship, but with antecedents that place it much earlier. It is central to the Ambrosian hymnal, which spread throughout the Latin Ch ...

'' in the Classical era were in C major. Mozart and Haydn wrote most of their masses in C major. Gounod (in a review of Sibelius' Third Symphony) said that "only God composes in C major". Six of his own masses are written in C. Of

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wo ...

's two symphonies in the key, the first is nicknamed the " Little C major" and the second the " Great C major".

Scott Joplin Scott Joplin ( 1868 – April 1, 1917) was an American composer and pianist. Because of the fame achieved for his ragtime compositions, he was dubbed the "King of Ragtime." During his career, he wrote over 40 original ragtime pieces, one ra ...

's " The Entertainer" is written in C major. Many musicians have pointed out that every musical key conjures up specific feelings. This idea is further explored in a radio program called '' The Signature Series''. American popular songwriter

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

claimed the key of C major to "be the key of strength, but also the key of regret". Sibelius's Symphony No. 7 is in C major and that key was of great importance in his previous symphonies.Philip Coad, "Sibelius" in ''A Guide to the Symphony'', edited by Robert Layton. Oxford University Press. Sibelius's Seventh "is in C major, and a look back at the previous four symphonies

y Sibelius Y, or y, is the twenty-fifth and penultimate letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. According to some authorities, it is the sixth (or sevent ...

will reveal how great the domination of C major has been n his music It is the key of the Third, the relative major of the Fourth and the important 'neutral agent' in its Finale, the key which first forces away the tonic in the Fifth's Finale, and the principal opposition – the key of the brass – in the Sixth. Although it is now the tonic key, C major is also strongly associated with brass in the Seventh Symphony."

Notable examples

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

** Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C major, BWV 564 ** Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV 846 ** Cello Suite No. 3, BWV 1009 *

** Cello Concerto No. 1 (1761–65) ** Symphony No. 7, ''Le Midi'' (1761) ** Symphony No. 60, ''Il distratto'' (1774) ** Symphony No. 82, ''The Bear'' (1786) ** String Quartet No. 32, ''The Bird'' (1781) ** String Quartet No. 62, ''Emperor'' (1797–98) ** Mass No. 10, ''Missa in tempore belli'' (1796) *

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

** 12 Variations in C major on the French song "Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman", KV 265 ** Concerto for flute and harp, KV 299/297c ** Piano Concerto No. 8, KV 246 ("Lutzow") ** Piano Concerto No. 13, KV 415 ** Piano Concerto No. 21, KV 467 ** Piano Concerto No. 25, KV 503 ** Piano Sonata No. 1, KV 279 ** Piano Sonata No. 7, KV 309 ** Piano Sonata No. 10, KV 330 ** Piano Sonata No. 16, KV 545 ** String Quartet No. 19, KV 465 ("Dissonance") ** Symphony No. 16, KV 128 ** Symphony No. 22, KV 162 ** Symphony No. 28, KV 200 ** Symphony No. 34, KV 338 ** Symphony No. 36, KV 425 ("Linz") ** Symphony No. 41, KV 551 ("Jupiter") *

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

** Piano Sonata No. 3, Op. 2, No. 3 ** Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 15 ** Symphony No. 1, Op. 21 ** Rondo Op. 51, No. 1 ** Piano Sonata No. 21, Op. 53 ("Waldstein") ** Triple Concerto for violin, cello, and piano in C major, Op. 56 (1803) ** Mass in C major, Op. 86 *

** ''

Wanderer Fantasy The Fantasie in C major, Op. 15 ( D. 760), popularly known as the ''Wanderer Fantasy'', is a four-movement fantasy for solo piano composed by Franz Schubert in 1822. It is widely considered Schubert's most technically demanding composition for th ...

'', Op. 15 D. 760 ** Symphony No. 6 (''Little'') ** Symphony No. 9, D. 944 ("Great") ** String Quintet in C major, D. 956 *

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...

** Wedding March from ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' *

Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period, who wrote primarily for solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown as a leadin ...

** Introduction and Polonaise brillante for cello and piano, Op. 3 ** Etude Op. 10 No. 1 "Waterfall" ** Etude Op. 10 No. 7 "Toccata" ** Mazurka Op. 67 No. 3 *

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

** Toccata, Op. 7 ** Fantasie in C, Op. 17 ** Arabeske, Op. 18 ** Symphony No. 2, Op. 61 *

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', whi ...

: Symphony in C *

Jean Sibelius Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often ...

** Symphony No. 3, Op. 52 (1907) ** Symphony No. 7, Op. 105 (1924) *

Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composers rejected the term. In ...

: ''

Boléro ''Boléro'' is a 1928 work for large orchestra by French composer Maurice Ravel. At least one observer has called it Ravel's most famous composition. It was also one of his last completed works before illness forced him into retirement. Co ...

'' *

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...

: Symphony in C (1940) *

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, ...

** Piano Concerto No. 3, Op. 26 (1921) ** Symphony No. 4 (original version), Op. 47 (1930) ** Symphony No. 4 (revised version), Op. 112 (1947) *

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, , group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and was regarded throughout his life as a major compo ...

: Symphony No. 7, Op. 60 ("Leningrad") *

Terry Riley Terrence Mitchell "Terry" Riley (born June 24, 1935) is an American composer and performing musician best known as a pioneer of the minimalist school of composition. Influenced by jazz and Indian classical music, his music became notable for ...

: ''

In C ''In C'' is a musical piece composed by Terry Riley in 1964 for an indefinite number of performers. He suggests "a group of about 35 is desired if possible but smaller or larger groups will work". A series of short melodic fragments, ''In C'' is ...

'' *

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was bas ...

: " C Jam Blues"

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:C Major Musical keys Major scales

Compositions

Notable examples

See also

References

Further reading

External links