# Which composers excelled in writing in minor keys?



## beetzart (Dec 30, 2009)

Ok, Beethoven seemed to love C minor and some of his greatest works were in that key. But I quite like Mozart's and Haydn's minor key pieces as they didn't compose many compared to their major key writing. Although, I would imagine JS Bach's ratio of major to minor compositions was more 1:1 then any other composer, possibly. And Bach excelled of course.


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Mozart whenever he got there!


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## EdwardBast (Nov 25, 2013)

beetzart said:


> Ok, Beethoven seemed to love C minor and some of his greatest works were in that key. But I quite like Mozart's and Haydn's minor key pieces as they didn't compose many compared to their major key writing. Although, I would imagine JS Bach's ratio of major to minor compositions was more 1:1 then any other composer, possibly. And Bach excelled of course.


It was only in the High Classical that one finds major mode works favored so disproportionately. In the Romantic Era and beyond, the modes are commonly mixed, beginning in the minor mode but with finales in the major.


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

Chopin most assuredly.


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## pcnog11 (Nov 14, 2016)

DavidA said:


> Mozart whenever he got there!


The magic of Mozart in writing minor keys is that the do not sound like minor keys. He just shifted from major to minor seamlessly. Beautiful!


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## T Son of Ander (Aug 25, 2015)

Aren't all of Rachmaninov's major works in minor keys? Symphonies, Piano Concerti, sonatas. I think the only works in major are some of the shorter piano pieces. So I would have to say he was pretty good at minor keys.


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## Phil loves classical (Feb 8, 2017)

Bartok excelled in writing in all sorts of keys and systems. He is my hero in music.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

T Son of Ander said:


> Aren't all of Rachmaninov's major works in minor keys? Symphonies, Piano Concerti, sonatas. I think the only works in major are some of the shorter piano pieces. So I would have to say he was pretty good at minor keys.


True, but he spends plenty of time in the major, and the symphonies and concertos end there. Like a lot of late Romantic music, his often can't be described as purely major or minor, regardless of where it begins or ends, and he weaves in modes from Russian liturgical music.


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Here's something related that I can't explain. First, let me be clear - I detest so-called popular music today, and probably for the last 30 years. Heavy metal, hip hop, rap, techno -- whatever it is there's just something abominable about it. It's tragic how low musical standards have dropped that there are so many people who think this crap is good that makes millionaires out of its creators. Anyway...I work out at a gym three days a week in a weight-training class that is choreographed to this music. I wear earplugs, but it is really noticeable how much of this music is in a minor key - the heavy metal is almost exclusively so. Going back to the 50s, 60s and even 70s there were few pop songs written in the minor. But now it seems to be the norm. I wonder why?


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

mbhaub said:


> Here's something related that I can't explain. First, let me be clear - I detest so-called popular music today, and probably for the last 30 years. Heavy metal, hip hop, rap, techno -- whatever it is there's just something abominable about it. It's tragic how low musical standards have dropped that there are so many people who think this crap is good that makes millionaires out of its creators. Anyway...I work out at a gym three days a week in a weight-training class that is choreographed to this music. I wear earplugs, but* it is really noticeable how much of this music is in a minor key - the heavy metal is almost exclusively so. Going back to the 50s, 60s and even 70s there were few pop songs written in the minor. But now it seems to be the norm. I wonder why?*


Young pop stars don't want to get caught sounding happy.


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## larold (Jul 20, 2017)

<<But now it seems to be the norm. I wonder why? >>

For the same reason classical musicians choose minor keys: they lend darkness and drama to the music. An instant comparison is the difference between Brahms Symphony No. 1 (in the Beethoven-esque key of C minor), full of drama, and the sunny disposition of the next Symphony No. 2 written in the more Haydn-esque key of D major. If you listen to any two compositions back-to-back in minor and major keys you'll note the obvious difference.


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