# What key to have the B section in?



## caters

So I am composing a Turkish march. I am not new to music theory but I am sort of debating in my head as to what key the B section should be in. I figured I would have a C section in C major but different from the A section(like having lots of octaves in the right hand), and a D section in A minor, and possibly an E section in C minor but I am not sure at all what key to have the B section in.

As you can probably tell from this, I am writing in rondo form.

I know I want the last harmonic bit of the B section to be a pre-tonic chord that leads to C major.

That gives me these options:

C minor
G major
F major
D minor


C minor I can cross off the list because if I am going to use C minor, I might as well use it for a section rather than just to lead back to C major. D minor, I don't think I would want to use either. So this leaves me with either a plagal cadence(IV->I) or a perfect cadence(V->I). Since a perfect cadence implies finality, I think I should avoid that for in the middle of a rondo. But I would use it in the coda. So this leaves me with F major as the final harmonic bit in the B section. If I have the B section in one of these keys:

D minor
Bb major
G minor


this gives me something along the lines of V/V(of section) = I(of piece)

So maybe I should do something like this:

Dm, Am, Dm, Gm, Bb, Eb, Bb, F, C(start of A section)

But should I end the B section with a plagal cadence and should I modulate to Bb major to do this? On the one hand, this avoids too much finality. But on the other hand, it also seems unusual to have the B section in the key of the ii chord or a distantly related key.


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## Phil loves classical

Hey, why don't you just write the piece and post the music, then ask what key which part should be. I'm sure it all depends on what suits the music and not anything beforehand.


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## david johnson

F or A will be fun to experiment with


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## EdwardBast

You're asking for theoretical advice on an imaginary piece? I'm with Phil on this: Write some music, then ask questions. It's a lot easier to give advice on music that exists — because music that exists is the best kind — except when it isn't.


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## drmdjones

Don't let the return to the A section dictate the choice of key for the B section. Rondo's typically have a retransition section after the structural close of a section to lead to the new key. If you are familiar with modulation techniques then you can get from any key to any other key in a few bars.


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