C minor is a

minor scale In music theory, the minor scale is three scale patterns – the natural minor scale (or Aeolian mode), the harmonic minor scale, and the melodic minor scale (ascending or descending) – rather than just two as with the major scale, which also ...

based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. 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 at ...

consists of three

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), ...

. Its

relative major In music, relative keys are the major and minor scales that have the same key signatures (enharmonically equivalent), meaning that they share all the same notes but are arranged in a different order of whole steps and half steps. A pair of major an ...

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

and its parallel major is

C major C major (or the key of C) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and ...

. The C

natural minor scale In music theory, the minor scale is three scale patterns – the natural minor scale (or Aeolian mode), the harmonic minor scale, and the melodic minor scale (ascending or descending) – rather than just two as with the major scale, which also ...

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

harmonic minor In music theory, the minor scale is three scale patterns – the natural minor scale (or Aeolian mode), the harmonic minor scale, and the melodic minor scale (ascending or descending) – rather than just two as with the major scale, which also ...

and melodic minor scales are: : :

Notable compositions

Charles-Valentin Alkan Charles-Valentin Alkan (; 30 November 1813 – 29 March 1888) was a French Jewish composer and virtuoso pianist. At the height of his fame in the 1830s and 1840s he was, alongside his friends and colleagues Frédéric Chopin and Franz Lisz ...

** Prelude Op. 31, No. 16 (Assez lentement) ** Symphony for Solo Piano, 1st movement: Allegro ** Trois grandes études, Op. 76, No. 3 "Mouvement semblable et perpetuel" (Rondo-Toccata) for the hands reunited * Johannes Sebastian Bach **

Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582 ''Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor'' (BWV 582) is an organ piece by Johann Sebastian Bach. Presumably composed early in Bach's career, it is one of his most important and well-known works, and an important influence on 19th and 20th century pas ...

Lute Suite in C minor, BWV 997 The Suite in C minor, BWV 997, by Johann Sebastian Bach, exists in two versions: * BWV 997.1 – 1st version, composed before its earliest extant manuscript copy was written 1738–1741, for Lautenwerk (lute-harpsichord) * BWV 997.2 – 2nd ve ...

** Cello Suite No. 5, BWV 1011 **

The Musical Offering ''The Musical Offering'' (German: or ), BWV 1079, is a collection of keyboard canons and fugues and other pieces of music by Johann Sebastian Bach, all based on a single musical theme given to him by Frederick the Great (King Frederick II of Pru ...

, BWV 1079 ** Partita No. 2, BWV 826 *

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 classical ...

(See

Beethoven and C minor The compositions of Ludwig van Beethoven in the key of C minor carry special significance for many listeners. His works in this key have been said to be powerful and emotive, evoking dark and stormy sentiments. Background During the Classical ...

) ** Piano Sonata No. 5 ** Piano Sonata No. 8 (''Pathétique'') ** Piano Concerto No. 3 **

Coriolan Overture The ''Coriolan Overture'' (german: link=no, Coriolan-Ouvertüre or Ouvertüre zu Coriolan), Op. 62, is a composition written by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1807 for Heinrich Joseph von Collin's 1804 tragedy ''Coriolan''. The structure and themes ...

** Symphony No. 5 ** ''Choral Fantasy'' ** Piano Sonata No. 32 *

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

** Symphony No. 1 ** String Quartet Op. 51/1 ** Piano Trio No. 3 ** Piano Quartet No. 3 *

Anton Bruckner Josef Anton Bruckner (; 4 September 182411 October 1896) was an Austrian composer, organist, and music theorist best known for his symphonies, masses, Te Deum and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-Germ ...

** Symphony No. 1 ** Symphony No. 2 ** Symphony No. 8 *

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 ...

** Rondo Op. 1 ** Piano Sonata No. 1 ** Étude Op. 10, No. 12 (''Revolutionary'') ** Étude Op. 25, No. 12 (''Ocean'') ** Prélude Op. 28, No. 20 "Funeral March" ** Nocturne in C minor, Op. 48, No. 1 **

Nocturne in C minor, Op. posth. (Chopin) Frédéric Chopin's Nocturne No. 21 in C minor, B. 108, WN 62, is a musical work for solo piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern ...

** Mazurka Op. 56, No. 3 *

Gabriel Fauré Gabriel Urbain Fauré (; 12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th-century composers ...

** Élégie, Op. 24 *

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

** Piano Sonata Hob. XVI/20 *

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

** ''Transcendental Étude'' No. 8 "Wilde Jagd" *

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and the modernism ...

** Symphony No. 2 "Auferstehung" *

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 sy ...

** Symphony No. 1 *

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 ...

**''

Great Mass in C minor ''Great Mass in C minor'' (german: Große Messe in c-Moll, links=no), K. 427/417a, is the common name of the musical setting of the mass by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, which is considered one of his greatest works. He composed it in Vienna in 1782 ...

'', KV 427/417a ** Piano Concerto No. 24, KV 491 **

Maurerische Trauermusik The ' (''Masonic Funeral Music'') in C minor, Köchel catalogue, K. 477 (K. 479a), is an orchestral work composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1785 in his capacity as a member of the Freemasonry, Freemasons. History Mozart's own entry into his ca ...

KV 477 *

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, p ...

** Symphony No. 3, Op. 44 *

Sergei Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one o ...

** Piano Concerto No. 2 *

Camille Saint-Saëns Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (; 9 October 183516 December 1921) was a French composer, organist, conductor and pianist of the Romantic music, Romantic era. His best-known works include Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso (1863), the Piano C ...

** Symphony No. 3 (''Organ Symphony'') *

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 Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and was regarded throug ...

** String Quartet No. 8 ** Symphony No. 4 ** Symphony No. 8 *

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 wor ...

** Symphony No. 4, D. 417 ** Piano Sonata No. 19, D. 958 ** Impromptu No. 1, D. 899

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:C Minor Musical keys Minor scales

Notable compositions

See also

External links