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Major vs Minor


finrod

Do you prefer a Major or Minor key signature?  

1 member has voted

  1. 1. Do you prefer a Major or Minor key signature?

    • Major
      10
    • Minor
      37
    • I like atonal music
      7
    • I'm not 100% sure
      14


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Just wondering what percentage of composers prefer writing in major vs minor key signatures. I know I definately prefer writing music in a minor key, even though I think it is more difficult to write for, I just like the dark/mysterious side of things ;) That doesn't mean to say I never write in a major key - it's just sometimes music in a major key seems to me to be too "nice" or "sickly sweet". Which do you prefer?

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I'm partial to minor, now that I understand how to work the melodic minor scale.

I kind of was hitting a rut though, I was focusing too much on minor... when major is nice. It's hard for me to write major key music that doesn't sound super sweet and happy... probably should use some minor chords in the major key...

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This seems like a gross simplification of harmonic language possibilities. Are we talking about plain ol' common practice tonality, because that hasn't really been in vogue since the mid 1800s. I mean, harmony has evolved SO much, composers have so much they can utilize in their harmonic vocabulary. I don't think I've written a key signature in anything I've written in quite a few years now. I know the majority of music I play and have studied that's been written in the past 100 years isn't exactly bound my key signatures (of course there are many exceptions, but we all know much the shackles of common practice tonality were shaken away). The term "atonal" is thrown around way to easily on this site without any real explanation of what they mean.

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Guest QcCowboy
I prefer the minor, and I also prefer people not to be dinks and request a more complete poll.

I prefer people to not be dinks and berate others for remarking that the poll is essentiall incomplete as it does not reflect the reality of composition in the 21st century.

There is tonal music that is neither major nor minor. Mine happens to fit into that slot: modally ambiguous, which is not to be confused with morally ambiguous, which might be a better description of me?

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Stinky-dinky-rink-a-link-fink. Kinky-mink-pink-a-wink-slinky-tinky-sink-a-zink! Wheeeee :toothygrin: :laugh:!!!

:blink:...ok, now that I got that out of my system....I'm currently in a rather modal mode, but leaning towards "major feelings". As mentioned before, though, I like to make things ambiguous :D.

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Personally, I prefer minor tonality; much more intriging. But when I do write in major it has to sickeningly happy, like funk or rag or something. However, major tonality can create great contrast in a predominantly minor peice, and is much harder to pull off than minor in a major peice.

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I like modality, and atonality. Lately i've been writing strict (free) twelve tone music as well as barbaric modal music with an emphasis on the kvint and the kvart. :toothygrin: What I really want to do is to integrate the two somehow...

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Guest QcCowboy

I've heard a lot of people say that, about the happy/sad thing.

I find that often when I work on a "sad" piece of music (or one that is particularly "dramatic", maybe) I will often ALSO work on a lighter, more frivolous work at the same time.

So the Scherzo for strings, same time as a VERY heavy song cycle for baritone and piano.

The harpsichord concertino (REALLY frivolous work), same time as both the "Dance of Untruth" and an earlier "sinfonia da requiem" (since withdrawn).

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