minor keys
Music's somber tonalities
Minor keys in music are scales and the compositions based on them, characterized by a darker, more melancholy sound than major keys.
The difference lies in the intervals between notes—minor keys have a flattened third degree.
Musicians associate minor keys with sadness, tension, or introspection: The piece shifts to a minor key in the bridge.
Most film scores use minor keys to build suspense.
Measure of relative size
- tonalityMusic organized around tonic
- intervalsGaps between events
- accidentalsPitch-modifying notation marks
- tonicInvigorating medicinal drink
dominant · subdominant · leading tone · mode · Aeolian · Dorian · modulation · transposition
Subdued, lasting sadness
- sadnessState of emotional pain
- sorrowDeep emotional distress
- longingIntense, persistent desire
- yearningIntense prolonged craving
wistfulness · nostalgia · heartache · introspection · pensiveness · mournfulness · solemnity · pathos
Of the air above
- darkAbsence of light
- dramaticStrikingly expressive or sudden
- mysteriousBeyond easy comprehension
- intenseExtreme in degree
stormy · reflective · intimate · restless · turbulent · shadowy · ethereal · nocturnal
Notes sounded simultaneously
- triadGroup of three
- progressionSequential forward movement
- diminishedMade or became smaller
- augmentedIncreased in size/value
seventh chord · resolution · cadence · dissonance · consonance · suspended · root · inversion
scale
Measure of relative size
- tonalityMusic organized around tonic
- intervalsGaps between events
- accidentalsPitch-modifying notation marks
tonic · dominant · subdominant · leading tone · mode · Aeolian · Dorian · modulation · transposition · circle of fifths
melancholy
Subdued, lasting sadness
yearning · wistfulness · nostalgia · heartache · introspection · pensiveness · mournfulness · solemnity · pathos · lament
atmospheric
Of the air above
- darkAbsence of light
- dramaticStrikingly expressive or sudden
- mysteriousBeyond easy comprehension
intense · stormy · reflective · intimate · restless · turbulent · shadowy · ethereal · nocturnal · autumnal
chord
Notes sounded simultaneously
- triadGroup of three
- progressionSequential forward movement
- diminishedMade or became smaller
augmented · seventh chord · resolution · cadence · dissonance · consonance · suspended · root · inversion · Neapolitan
Moonlight Sonata
Celebrated nocturnal piano work
- Horror PunkSamhain, Danzig, Balzac, Graves, Doyle
- musical keysC major, D major, E major, F major, G major
- Balkan folktambura, prim, def, hora, czardas
- GothJoy Division, Bauhaus, Sisters of Mercy, The Damned, Robert Smith
- Gothicgargoyle, gothic fiction, pointed arch, gothic architecture, flying buttress
- Seattle RockPearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden, grunge, Smells Like Teen Spirit
minor keysmajor keys
Scales with happy tonality
major scale · major scales · celebratory music · fanfare · wedding marches
minor, key, minors, keys, minority, keyed, keying, keyless, keynote