G major
 | |
| Relative key | E minor |
|---|---|
| Parallel key | G minor |
| Component pitches | |
| G, A, B, C, D, E, F♯ | |
G major is a major scale based on G, consisting of the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E,and F#. Its key signature consists of one sharp.
Ascending and descending G Major scale
In the alto clef, the sharp is usually placed on the first space from the top, though in some Baroque music it is placed on the first line from the bottom.
Its relative minor is E minor, and its parallel minor is G minor.
In the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, "G major is often a key of 6/8 chain rhythms," according to Alfred Einstein, and in the Baroque era, G major was regarded as the "key of benediction."
69 of Domenico Scarlatti's 555 keyboard sonatas are in G major, and 12 of Joseph Haydn's 104 Symphonies are in G major. Beethoven, on the other hand, hardly used G major, his only major orchestral work in the key being his Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major.
For orchestral works in G major, the timpani are typically set to G and D a fifth apart, rather than a fourth apart as for most other keys.
For singing, G major is considered an easier key than B-flat major, and there is a campaign to have the official version of The Star Spangled Banner transposed to G major.
Well known classical pieces in this key
- Eine Kleine Nachtmusik - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 - Johann Sebastian Bach
- Goldberg_Variations - Johann Sebastian Bach
- Surprise Symphony - Joseph Haydn
- Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis - Ralph Vaughan Williams
- Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major - Ludwig Van Beethoven
- Symphony No. 4 - Gustav Mahler
Well known music written in this key
- I Fought the Law - Bobby Fuller Four
- American Pie -Don McLean
- Baby I Love Your Way - Peter Frampton
- Sitting on the Dock of the Bay -Otis Redding
- River of Dreams -Billy Joel
- Georgia on My Mind -Ray Charles
- All You Need Is Love -The Beatles
- Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life) - Green Day
- I'm A Believer -The Monkees
- Live and Let Die -Paul McCartney & Wings (also in G minor)
- Closer To Free (Theme from Party of Five) - The Bodeans
- Louisiana 1927 -Randy Newman
- Mohammed's Radio -Warren Zevon
- Me Enamoro de ti -Fey
Reference
- Alfred Einstein, Mozart, His Character, His Work, Chapter 10, "Mozart's Choice Of Keys"
