C flat major
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Relative key | A♭ minor | |
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Parallel key | C♭ minor enharmonic: B minor |
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Component pitches | ||
C♭, D♭, E♭, F♭, G♭, A♭, B♭, C♭ |
C flat major is a major scale based on C flat, consisting of the pitches C flat, D flat, E flat, F flat, G flat, A flat, B flat and C flat. Its key signature consists of seven flats.
Its relative minor is A flat minor, and its parallel minor is C flat minor, usually replaced by B minor, since C flat minor has ten flats and therefore is impractical to use. Its enharmonic equivalent is B major, and is more often used in the music that used it as the main key for a composition, usually Irish music. In some manuscripts, the C flat major key signature in the bass clef is written with the flat for the F on the second line from the top.
C flat major is the home key of the harp, with all its pedals in the top position, and it is considered the most resonant key for the instrument. Thus, in Richard Strauss's Ein Heldenleben, the first cue for the harps is written in C flat major even though the rest of the orchestra is playing in E flat.
Diatonic Scales and Keys | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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lower case letters are minor the table indicates the number of sharps or flats in each scale |