The key signature of D flat major has five flats. The flattened notes correspond to the
black notes of the piano. Its relative minor is B flat minor. Its tonic minor is D flat minor,
which would contain eight flats, but is replaced by C sharp minor which contains four
sharps. The scale of D flat major consists of the notes D flat, E flat, F, G flat, A flat, B
flat and C. In his ‘Raindrop’ Prelude and Fantaisie-Impromptu, Chopin switches from D
flat major to C sharp minor for the middle section in the parallel minor. He reverses the
process in his Waltz opus 64 no. 2. Tchaikovsky’s piano Concerto no. 1 is in the key of
B flat minor but the opening theme is in the relative major of D flat major. The
enharmonic key to D flat major is C sharp major which is not often used as it contains
seven sharps. Bach used the C sharp major key signature in the second prelude of Book
One of his ‘Well-tempered Clavier.
Some piano pieces in D flat major:
Chopin: Prelude opus 26 no. 15 ‘Raindrop’
Chopin: Waltz opus 64 no. 1 ‘Minute’
Chopin: Nocturne opus 27 no.2
Chopin: Berceuse opus 57
Liszt: Rigoletto Paraphrase
Liszt: Consolation no. 3 (Lento placido)
Liszt: ‘Un Sospiro’ (‘A Sigh’)
Sinding: ‘Rustle of Spring’ opus 33 no. 2
Rachmaninoff: ‘Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini’ for piano and orchestra – Eighteenth
Variation
Debussy ‘Clair de Lune from ‘Suite Bergamasque’
C sharp minor
The key signature of C sharp minor has four sharps. Its relative major is E major. Its
tonic major is C sharp major which is not often used as it contains seven sharps and is
replaced by D flat major. The natural minor scale of C sharp minor consists of the notes
C sharp, D sharp, E, F sharp, G sharp, A sharp, B sharp [C] and C sharp.
Scarlatti wrote just two keyboard sonatas in C sharp minor, K 246 and K 247. The outer
movements of Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight’ Sonata opus 27 no. 2 were in C sharp minor and
the middle movement was in the enharmonic key of D flat major. After the ‘Moonlight’
Sonata the key of C sharp minor became more frequent in the piano repertoire.