Klarinet Archive - Posting 000660.txt from 1995/05

From: Tom Izzo <tji@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Weird keys/Key characteristics
Date: Tue, 23 May 1995 18:48:12 -0400

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On Tue, 23 May 1995, Laura R Bornhoeft wrote:

> I had always taken for granted that as you add sharps or flats to the key
> signature, you end up putting your fingers on more keys and fewer holes,
> i.e., using more cross-fingerings (or at least the Boehm equivalent of such).
> The fingers work out of their natural positions for a greater part of the
> time, and so playing in those keys is physically more clumsy, and hence
> more difficult.
> Also, when you get LOTS of sharps or flats, the music starts to call for
> double-sharps and -flats (especially in short-term modulations), and that
> will mentally slow you down.
>
> Concerning personalities or colors of different keys: I remember reading
> somewhere a long time ago that certain long-ago composers (Mozart,
> Beethoven, Dvorak come to mind) did actually associate different keys
> with different (visual) colors and/or moods, and were quite definite
> about it -- but they didn't agree on which key was which color. Maybe
> that's one of the romantic ideas of the 19th century, which, of course,
> the technical 20th century has discarded.
>
Maybe I'm old fashioned then, huh? Oh it's nice to be considered in the
company of a Mozart or a Beethoven-but Dvorak, wasn't "long ago".

Tom
tji@-----.edu