Could someone please explain, in simple terms, what the difference is between major keys and minor keys?
I am totally illiterate about musical syntax and conventions, though I do know what an octave is. (I think,)
pesce.del.giorno said:
Could someone please explain, in simple terms, what the difference is between major keys and minor keys?
I am totally illiterate about musical syntax and conventions, though I do know what an octave is. (I think,)
Frequencies
pesce.del.giorno said:
Could someone please explain, in simple terms, what the difference is between major keys and minor keys?
I am totally illiterate about musical syntax and conventions, though I do know what an octave is. (I think,)
The main difference is the third interval. In a major chord the third is four semitones. A minor third is three semitones.
Skeptic Pete said:
pesce.del.giorno said:
Could someone please explain, in simple terms, what the difference is between major keys and minor keys?
I am totally illiterate about musical syntax and conventions, though I do know what an octave is. (I think,)
The main difference is the third interval. In a major chord the third is four semitones. A minor third is three semitones.
I’m with fishy, and totally illiterate about musical syntax, so the above just reads as a bit of gobbledegook to me.
The minor key has a flattened “third”
That is in a major key say C,D,E, the E becomes Eb and so on.
In layman’s terms there is a marked difference in the mood between a major and minor chord. (happy sad)
You won’t find many funeral dirges written in a major key.
Skeptic Pete said:
In layman’s terms there is a marked difference in the mood between a major and minor chord. (happy sad)You won’t find many funeral dirges written in a major key.
I heartily endorse this post
See, was that so difficult.
:)
sibeen said:
See, was that so difficult.:)
it’s not really a simple concept.. not even people who play instruments really get it.. a musician might
But yeah, basically it is about frequencies.
Or at least the way different frequencies combine.
In a basic major or a minor chord, there are three fundamental frequencies (ignoring octaves and harmonic frequencies)
They combine in a way that causes a very complex resultant sound.
Marches and celebratory songs are written in major keys while ballads and dirges and sad songs are often written in minor keys.
With many exceptions of course.
Both scales have 7 notes in an octave, which comprises 12 semitones.
The interval between any two notes in a scale can be either a semitone or a tone (2 semitones).
So each scale has 5 Tone intervals and 2 Semitone intervals. The difference is how they are sequenced.
The intervals for a major scale are: Tone, Tone, Semitone, Tone, Tone, Tone, Semitone
If you start at C on a piano going up, playing each white key you play a major scale.
The intervals for a minor scale are: Tone, Semitone, Tone, Tone, Semitone, Tone, Tone.
If you start at A on a piano going up, playing each white key you play a minor scale.
In both major and minor keys the principal triad is the root, third and fifth notes.
The root and the fifth are the same note in both keys so, as has been discussed, the main difference between minor and major is that the former has a lowered third.
More complex chords will also be different.
Oh shit there’s going to be some damage today.
Skeptic Pete said:
Oh shit there’s going to be some damage today.
Come again?
wrong thread i think MB. weather report for lemon tree passage.
ChrispenEvan said:
wrong thread i think MB. weather report for lemon tree passage.
Oh ok. Thanks.
maybe he’s writing a song ..
it goes like this, the fourth the fifth
the minor fall and the major lift…
Thanks, I think I’m getting a feel for the concept. So major and minor keys differ in the combination of notes, (?timbre) producing feeling or mood. Is that right?
I’m thinking of Beethoven’s 5th in C minor, which has a threatening brooding feel. I gather it wouldn’t work in C major.
What is the difference, then, between C minor and C major? Are they the same pitch, just different combinations of tones and semitones?
pesce.del.giorno said:
Thanks, I think I’m getting a feel for the concept. So major and minor keys differ in the combination of notes, (?timbre) producing feeling or mood. Is that right?
I’m thinking of Beethoven’s 5th in C minor, which has a threatening brooding feel. I gather it wouldn’t work in C major.
What is the difference, then, between C minor and C major? Are they the same pitch, just different combinations of tones and semitones?
Aye lad, they’re both based on C as the tonic note, with C minor having a flattened E, B & A, whereas C major keeps those natural.
As Pete said, minor is a flattened third note.
He learned that hanging around with musicians
Go to asia and there are no major or minor keys. They write their music and tune their instruments differently; but they don’t write symphonies.
Dropbear said:
As Pete said, minor is a flattened third note.He learned that hanging around with musicians
What’s a “flattened third note”?
pesce.del.giorno said:
What’s a “flattened third note”?
It just means that the distance between the first and third note in the scale is three semitones rather than four. But the standard kinds of major and minor scales have other interval differences as well:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minor_scale
There’s not much difference between C major and A minor, merely the optional sharpened G in A minor. And it is optional, not a necessary part of the minor.
So when playing, it’s really the chord progressions, the cadences, that most strongly distinguish between the two.
>There’s not much difference between C major and A minor, merely the optional sharpened G in A minor
As we’ve been pointing out, the difference is in the size of intervals at various positions of the scale. C major scale is based on C, A minor on A, and the third, sixth and seventh notes from those differ in their interval size for the respective scales.
If we consider the major triad (CEG in C major) there is a major third (with fast beat frequency, around 11bps) with a minor third (with an inaudibly fast beat frequency) on top of it. In the minor triad the situation is reversed with a minor third under a major third. The perfect fifth interval (CG) in nearly beatless.
It seems to be counterintuitive to analyse major v minor in these terms.
This site says that the beat frequency ratios are the clue to it, with a ratio of 4:5:6 for the major triad and 10:12:15 for the minor.
“The fundamental beat frequency associated with a chord can be determined by looking at the repeat period – that is, for the frequency ratios given above (which are reduced to the lowest possible integer values), the repeat period for the major chord is 4 times the period of the lowest note in the chord. For the 7th, it is 20 times that of the lowest note. Since f = 1/T, the fundamental beat frequency for the major chord is 1/4th the frequency of the lowest note, and for the 7th, it is 1/20th the frequency of the lowest note. If you listen carefully, you can hear the beat frequency as an additional unplayed note.
What makes a chord sound consonant or dissonant depends upon human physiology and psychology. One “rule” is based on work by Helmholtz and relies on “overlapping harmonics.” A nice explanation is contained in the article by Jan Wild listed below. Basically, for each pair of notes in the chord, find the lowest harmonics which match. If it is the 8th or less in every case, the chord is consonant. For example, the major triad has frequency radios of 4:5:6. The harmonics of the lowest note are then 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, etc. and the harmonics of the second are 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, etc. The fifth of the lower matches with the fourth of the upper so this interval should be consonant. (i.e. they are both less than the 9th harmonic). One gets a similar result for 4 and 6, and 5 and 6. Hence, the entire major triad is consonant. “