Re: [Harp-L] Why do we associate major with happy and minor with sad? (No harp content)

[Winslow Yerxa <winslowyerxa@xxxxxxxxx>]

I don't know what book you read that made such a statement. If you've every 
studied music history or sung liturgical music, you'll know that this simply 
isn't the case.

IN European religious music, as in secular music, major tends to be happy 
(praise the lord in all his goodness) and minor tends to be sad (alas, they have 
crucified our saviour).

In a lot of music, minor means sexy, though this may be mixed with sorrow.

Winslow
 Winslow Yerxa
Author, Harmonica For Dummies ISBN 978-0-470-33729-5
Harmonica instructor, The Jazzschool for Music Study and Performance
Resident expert, bluesharmonica.com
Columnist, harmonicasessions.com




________________________________
From: Rick Dempster <rick.dempster@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: michaelrubinharmonica@xxxxxxxxx; harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx; chicago bluesman 
<chicagobluesman@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tue, November 23, 2010 8:13:19 PM
Subject: RE: [Harp-L] Why do we associate major with happy and minor with sad? 
(No harp content)

In the European orchestral tradition, as I understand it, minor keys were 
dominant when most of the music written was
of a religious nature. ie the church was the dominant cultural power. As the 
world became more secularised, the major key came into prominence.
The minor keys were seen as being of a devotional nature, while the major scale 
was more wordly.
Think I got this impression from some musical history book I read some years 
ago.

RD

>>> chicago bluesman <chicagobluesman@xxxxxxxxxxx> 24/11/2010 14:51 >>>

I tend to associate minor key tunes with cultures which have been historically 
repressed & persecuted.  Think of how Judaism/Jews have  been treated...or 
Romani (gypsies)...I'm sure there are other examples.   I suppose that just as 
we associate blues with an oppressed class of people during a specific 
historical time...some minor key song structures may be linked to other groups 
which have known great hardship. There must be an ethnomusicologist on the list 
who can shed more light and put it in context.    But I agree with something 
written by someone else--some minor key material is funny, whimsical, witty and 
charming.

> Date: Tue, 23 Nov 2010 09:50:59 -0600
> From: michaelrubinharmonica@xxxxxxxxx 
> To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx 
> Subject: [Harp-L] Why do we associate major with happy and minor with sad?    
>(No harp content)
> 
> Guesses?
> Michael Rubin
> Michaelrubinharmonica.com