G-sharp major is a theoretical key based on the

musical note In music, a note is the representation of a musical sound. Notes can represent the pitch and duration of a sound in musical notation. A note can also represent a pitch class. Notes are the building blocks of much written music: discretizatio ...

G, consisting of the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its

key signature In Western musical notation, a key signature is a set of sharp (), flat (), or rarely, natural () symbols placed on the staff at the beginning of a section of music. The initial key signature in a piece is placed immediately after the clef a ...

has six sharps and one

double sharp In music, sharp, dièse (from French), or diesis (from Greek) means, "higher in pitch". More specifically, in musical notation, sharp means "higher in pitch by one semitone (half step)". Sharp is the opposite of flat, which is a lowering of pi ...

. Its relative minor is E-sharp minor, which is usually replaced by

F minor F minor is a minor scale based on F, consisting of the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature consists of four flats. Its relative major is A-flat major and its parallel major is F major. Its enharmonic equivalent, E-sharp mi ...

. Its parallel minor is

G-sharp minor G-sharp minor is a minor scale based on G, consisting of the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has five sharps. Its relative major is B major. Its parallel major, G-sharp major, is usually replaced by its enharmonic equi ...

; its enharmonic equivalent is A-flat major. The G-sharp major scale is: : Although G-sharp major is usually notated as the enharmonic key of A-flat major, because A-flat major has only four flats as opposed to G-sharp major's eight sharps (including the F), it does appear as a secondary key area in several works in sharp keys, most notably in the Prelude and Fugue in

C-sharp major C-sharp major (or the key of C-sharp) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. It is enharmonically equivalent to D-flat major. Its key signature has seven sharps. The C-sharp major scale is: : I ...

from

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 ...

's ''

The Well-Tempered Clavier ''The Well-Tempered Clavier'', BWV 846–893, consists of two sets of preludes and fugues in all 24 major and minor keys for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach. In the composer's time, ''clavier'', meaning keyboard, referred to a variety of i ...

'', Book 1. The G-sharp minor prelude (and the fugue) from the same set ends with a

Picardy third A Picardy third, (; french: tierce picarde) also known as a Picardy cadence or Tierce de Picardie, is a major chord of the tonic at the end of a musical section that is either modal or in a minor key. This is achieved by raising the third of the ...

, on a G-sharp major chord. G-sharp major is tonicised briefly in several of Frédéric Chopin's

nocturnes A nocturne is a musical composition that is inspired by, or evocative of, the night. History The term ''nocturne'' (from French ''nocturne'' 'of the night') was first applied to musical pieces in the 18th century, when it indicated an ensembl ...

in C-sharp minor. A section in the second movement of Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 is in G-sharp major, although the key signature has four sharps. The end of the

exposition Exposition (also the French for exhibition) may refer to: *Universal exposition or World's Fair * Expository writing ** Exposition (narrative) * Exposition (music) *Trade fair A trade fair, also known as trade show, trade exhibition, or trade e ...

of the second movement Charles-Valentin Alkan's ''

Grande sonate 'Les quatre âges' ''Grande sonate: Les quatre âges'' (French for ''Grand sonata: The Four Ages'') is a four movement sonata for piano by Charles-Valentin Alkan. The sonata's title refers to the subtitles given to each movement, portraying a man at the ages of 20, 3 ...

'', subtitled ''Quasi-Faust'', is in G-sharp major, albeit written with a six-sharp key signature (the movement opens in

D-sharp minor D-sharp minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has six sharps. Its relative major is F-sharp major (or enharmonically G-flat major), and its parallel major is D-sharp major ...

and ends in

F-sharp major F-sharp major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, consisting of the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has six sharps. The F-sharp major scale is: : Its relative minor is D-sharp minor (or enharmonically ...

). The final pages of ''

A World Requiem ''A World Requiem'', Op. 60 is a large-scale symphonic work with soloists and choirs by the British composer John Foulds. Written as a requiem and using forces similar in scale to Gustav Mahler's Eighth Symphony, the work calls for a full symp ...

'' by John Foulds are written in G-sharp major with its correct key signature shown in the vocal score including the F. The key signature is shown as in the LilyPond example with the scale above, starting with the C and ending at the F."John Foulds: ''A World Requiem'' (1921)
Wise Music Classical

References

External links

* {{Circle of fifths Musical keys Major scales