E Major is a key expressing delight. It is especially lyrical and pleasing to the ear, but also light and airy (which may give it a somewhat otherworldly aspect). In my imagination, it has a blue color.
E major consists of the pitches E, F♯, G♯, A, B, C♯, and D♯. Its key
signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor and its
parallel minor is E minor.
This key is easy to play on the violin because the highest open string, E, is the main note, and the sound is brilliant and, like the key of E minor, it contains an F♯ note in the first position, so there is no need to unnaturally move the index finger when moving from the other strings to the E string. This may be why Tartini and Viotti, the great violin concerto composers, preferred to write in this key.
Antonio Vivaldi used this key for the "Spring" concerto from The Four Seasons and Johann Sebastian Bach used E major for a well-known violin concerto, as well as for his third partita for solo violin.
Although not very difficult to play on the violin, the four sharps make E Major difficult to read. Only two of Joseph Haydn's 106 symphonies are in E major: No. 12 and No. 29.
Ludwig van Beethoven used E major for two of his piano sonatas, Op. 14/1 and Op. 109.
Starting with Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3, several works in the key of C minor began to have slow movements in E major, three examples of which are Johannes Brahms' First Symphony and Piano Quartet No. 3, and Sergei Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2.
Chopin's First Piano Concerto starts in E minor, but the last two movements are in E major. Typically, symphonies that begin in E minor switch to E major for the
finale, such as Sergei Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2, Pyotr Ilyich
Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5 and Dmitri Shostakovitch's Symphony No. 10.
Chopin's Étude Op. 10, No. 3, one of his best known works, is in E major. His last Nocturne, Op. 62 No. 2, and his final Scherzo No. 4, are also in E major.
In the 19th century, symphonies in this key were rare, with Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 7 being one of very few examples. For Bruckner, the key of E major was associated with "music of contemplation."
Concerto No. 1 in E major, RV 269, "La Primavera" from "The Four Seasons" by Antonio Vivaldi.
The first movements, for example, are each built on a ritornello - recurring at various levels and then often greatly shortened - with interspersed modulating solo passages, but also more extended tutti passages. Due to the poetic program, not only do the solo sections have a very different character, but in some concertos Vivaldi was also forced not only to vary the ritornello considerably, but sometimes also to replace it in the course of a movement with completely different material .
The second movement is usually an aria, in Vivaldi's case in two parts. The first part modulates into the dominant or the parallel major key, the second part of about the same length represents a varied repetition and modulates back. The solo melody is accompanied by a continuous motive in the orchestra, also inspired by the sonnet.
The final movement usually bears stylized dance-like features, and always differs from the first in time signature (typically triple instead of quadruple time), and tends to shorten the ritornello to fewer steps, for example, rondo-like always in the tonic only. In general, these movements are less elaborate; following this tendency, in the Four Seasons they also paint the program in less detail and tend to represent a general situation in their entirety (such as a dance or a thunderstorm).
1st movement Allegro. E Major.
The familiar theme of the first movement consists of two short sections, each repeated piano. Then the very first solo foregrounds not the solo violin, but a trio of equal violins that vividly depict the jumbled chirping of various species of birds over a latent E major chord. Between the next two short ritornellos there is a lengthy tutti passage illustrating the murmur of springs and gentle winds, modulating into the dominant key until suddenly a spring storm breaks loose, with thunder throughout the orchestra and highly virtuosic flashes from the solo violin. A brief resumption of the violin trio now follows in the parallel minor key with other bird voices and the second half of the theme; another brief solo then leads into the concluding ritornello.
Second movement Largo. C-sharp minor.
The two-part slow second movement alludes to the Baroque tradition of shepherd poetry, portraying a sleeping shepherd. The accompanying violins paint the rustle of leaves and grasses; in the background, the tired barking of the shepherd's dog (a low C-sharp note of the viola).
Third movement, Allegro. E Major.
The final movement depicts a dance of nymphs and shepherds (Danza pastorale, "Shepherd's Dance"); Vivaldi makes exquisite use of traditional bagpipe effects.
The key of E Major truly expresses delight at the coming of spring in this concerto.
Youssefian & Voices of Music
Violin Concerto in E Major BWV 1042 by Johann Sebastian Bach
One of Bach's three violin concertos - in fact the most familiar and most frequently performed of them.The Concerto in E major is difficult to date. Like the Brandenburg concertos, it probably originates from Köthen, a vibrant court where the tone was set by instrumental music. But it could also date from Leipzig, where from 1730 Bach led the local Collegium Musicum, with whom he performed a lot of secular music in the famous Café Zimmermann.
Bach based the piece on the Venetian concerto model in three movements, but gave it his own twist, as each movement has an un-Italian characteristic.
1st movement Allegro 2/2 time, E major.
The concerto starts with a festive opening, which is at the same time very simple - quite in the delightful vein of E Major. The unique fusion of ritornello form and da capo form is presented in an accomplished way. The Allegro was given an ABA structure, like most Baroque arias, whereby the first section returns with great embellishment after a contrasting second section.
2nd movement Adagio e sempre piano 3/4 time in C-sharp minor
This is a beautiful movement that begins with a solo cantilena on a long sustained note over a basso ostinato that repeats the six-bar theme presented in the low strings at the beginning of the movement. Whereas Vivaldi sometimes restricts his slow sections to a few chords, Bach wrote a long-drawn-out ostinato, with intricate musings by the violin and a free-flowing, melancholy solo melody above a repetitive bass motif.
3rd movement Allegro assai 3/8 time in E major.
The concerto concludes with bright music derived from a dance. The final movement resumes the exuberant mood of the opening to the rhythm of a passepied – a three-part Baroque dance. It is a refrain with couplets, a rondo, which is a form seldom seen in concertos. It is perfectly proportioned. The refrain and the couplets consist of sixteen bars, except for the last couplet, which is twice as long. Bach uses this extra space to follow a remote harmonic path, repeating the catchy theme once again, after a breathtaking gap. Festive and extroverted music!
Performed by Shunske Sato and the Netherlands Bach Society for All of Bach
Joseph Haydn, Symphony no 12 in E Major
Symphonies Nos. 12, 29, and 44 are the only ones in Joseph Haydn's complete works in the symphonic key of E, which was unusual for the time, the first two in major, the last in minor. Symphony No. 12 represents a typical example of the Austrian chamber symphony around the middle of the 18th century. The last movement, however, is no longer a light celebration but already has its own weight, although not as pronounced as in Symphony No. 29, composed two years later. The opening movements of both E major symphonies are marked by a songlike, lyrical character.
First movement: Allegro. E major, 2/2 time (alla breve).
The strings begin in unison and, unusually for the opening of a symphony of this period, in piano with a gentle melody. The second theme is performed only by the strings and hardly contrasts in character with the first.
Second movement: Adagio. E minor, 6/8 time, strings only.
The movement as a whole exhibits echoes of opera seria through its forte unison outbursts, chromaticism, and dissonances. The Adagio opens as a typical Siciliano motive in the voice-leading 1st violin, answered in sharp contrast by a broken-falling diminished chord in forte unison.
Third movement: Presto. E major, 2/4 time.
The first theme is based on the ascending E major triad with note repetition. It is periodically structured, performed forte, and repeated with an altered postlude that leads directly into the transitional passage beginning in measure 17. Here, the repeated-note motive continues as an upbeat variant.
Giovanni Antonini, Conductor | Il Giardino Armonico
Ludwig van Beethoven, Piano Sonata No. 30 in E major, Op. 109.
In Beethoven, E major (bright and radiant) and E minor (sad, lamenting) often appear together, as in Op. 14 No. 1, the second Razumovsky quartet and Op. 90. The combination has been said to mitigate both the light and the dark aspects of the music.
Opus 109 differs from the "standard model" piano sonata in several ways. Although written in three movements, it feels more like "two balanced movements", since the first movement is linked to the scherzo-like Prestissimo by holding down the pedal. The internal form of the first movement is based less on elaboration than on the contrasting juxtaposition of fast and slow, loud and soft, and major and minor. Hence the second movement takes on even more of the function usually assigned to the first movement, which would be in sonata-allegro form. Then the third movement is – most unusually for a sonata – a theme and variations. Thus the theme in the third movement takes on the role of the slow movement, which is usually the second movement in the standard sonata.
1st movement. Vivace, ma non troppo 2/4 time in E major. Sonata form.
The first movement reflects the strong interest that Beethoven developed during this period in structures in which contrasting sections are included parenthetically. The same tendency is manifest in the Missa Solemnis, composed at almost the same time, and in the piano sonatas following this one. A quiet, lyrical, rapid Vivace first theme is contrasted, after only eight bars, with a forte and Adagio second theme full of arpeggios. Even from a purely harmonic point of view, the contrast between the clear major in the first part and the extremely tense diminished seventh chords in the second could hardly be more obvious. After a 14-bar presentation, follows a development based on the first theme. From the middle register, the volume increases and rises to the upper register through a long crescendo, and when it reaches the climax, the first theme is reproduced one octave higher. Immediately after that, the second theme is reproduced with some changes, and from bar 66, the coda, which deals exclusively with the first theme, quietly closes the movement.
2nd movement. Prestissimo 6/8 time in E minor. Sonata form.
The second movement is played without interruption from the first movement. The stormy Prestissimo in E minor has been described as one of Beethoven's most tuneful Prestissimo movements. This movement is also in sonata form, although the usual contrast between the first subject (E minor) and the second subject (B minor) is completely absent here because of the nature of the thematic material.
3rd movement. Theme and 6 variations.
The center of gravity of the entire sonata is almost entirely placed in this third movement. It was the first time in Beethoven's piano sonatas that variations occupied such a large part of a work. The movement opens with a 16-bar theme. The dotted notes emphasize the second beat of the bar, giving this song-like theme something of the character of a Sarabande. Its dignified, meditative feel is strengthened by emphasis on the tonic E.
Variation 1 - This variation keeps the tempo of the theme. Compared with the quartet-like theme, it is more pianistic. The melody is an octave higher, thereby becoming more emotional. It is formed like a "ceremonial waltz".
Variation 2 - This variation is marked leggiermente.
Variation 3 - This variation breaks away from the original tempo and is marked Allegro vivace. It is a virtuosic Allegro in a two-part contrapuntal texture reminiscent of a two-part invention. This is the only variation in this movement to end on forte.
Variation 4 - This variation is a little slower than the theme. The first half (repeated) is a contrapuntal texture varying between two and four voices. In the second half, between zero and two voices continue in the same vein over an accompaniment of broken chords.
Variation 5 (Allegro ma non troppo) - the driving rhythmic energy of the fifth variation gives the impression, at least to begin with, of a complex, many-voiced chorale-like fugue.
Variation 6 (Tempo primo del tema) - In extreme contrast to the energy and speed of the previous variation, this one begins with a four-bar passage marked cantabile, in quiet, slow crotchets at the tempo of the theme. Its peaceful, static character is emphasized by the repeated B in the top voice. As the sonata progresses to its conclusion, Beethoven intensifies almost every musical parameter to the maximum. The last sixteen bars repeat the simple theme – just as if nothing had happened – and let it fade away quietly.
Played by Andras Schiff.
Étude Op. 10, No. 3 in E Major, Frédéric Chopin.
A study for solo piano composed by Chopin in 1832, a slow cantabile study for polyphonic and expressive legato playing. This étude differs from most of Chopin's in its tempo, its poetic character and the lingering yet powerful recitation of its cantabile melody. It marks a significant departure from the technical virtuosity required in standard études before Chopin's time. Like most of Chopin's other études, this work is in ternary form (A–B–A). Chopin himself believed the melody of the piece to be the most beautiful
one he ever composed. It became famous through numerous popular
arrangements.
Lang Lang plays Chopin Etude Op.10 No.3 in E Major at The Berlin Philharmonic.
4. Bruckner Symphony No 7 in E Major
One of the composer's best-known symphonies, written between 1881 and 1883 and revised in 1885. It is dedicated to Ludwig II of Bavaria. The premiere, given under Arthur Nikisch and the Gewandhaus Orchestra in the opera house at Leipzig on 30 December 1884, brought Bruckner the greatest success he had known in his life. The symphony is sometimes referred to as the "Lyric", though the appellation is not the composer's own, and is seldom used (but it fits E Major!).1 Allegro moderato (in E).
The main theme is a 21-bar melody; an infinite melody of great beauty and of lyrical-epic character (horns, cellos and then the violas). The subsidiary theme (typified by a double stroke and initiated by oboe and clarinet) and even the rhythmically pronounced 3rd theme remain within the cantabile character. The movement is monumentally closed by a coda that rests on a 52-measure organ point.
2 Adagio: sehr feierlich und sehr langsam (in c-sharp)
This Adagio is usually considered the highlight of this symphony. Bruckner himself has interpreted this Adagio as his premonition of Wagner's death. "Once I came home and was very sad and thought to myself, the master cannot possibly live long; then the Adagio in c-sharp occurred to me." The movement begins with a lament dominated by violas and (Wagner) tubas. The melody is related to the "non confundar" from Bruckner's Te Deum. There is a more mobile second theme in the violins ("mild und leise"). With constantly new turns, the climax comes halfway through in variation II: the mood turns to C major. After this, the atmosphere always remains unchanged; only rarely does the feeling break through completely. After another solemn lamentation by the tubae on Wagner's death, the coda sounds in a soft conclusion.
3 Scherzo: sehr schnell - Trio: etwas langsamer (in a)
This movement was composed before the Adagio. Yet it is well adapted to the Adagio in terms of atmosphere: here not the village dance usual for Bruckner, but a concise piece of a grotesque to demonic character. The middle piece is a lyrical, quietly rocking trio.
4 Finale: bewegt, doch nicht schnell (in E)
Opens with an unusually cheerful main theme and a chorale-like subsidiary theme which leads to a complex development. The movement ends with a repetition of a pompous recital of the main theme from the opening movement.
hr-Sinfonieorchester – Frankfurt Radio Symphony ∙ Christoph Eschenbach, Dirigent
[Incorporates parts from the relevant Japanese, English, Dutch and German articles from Wikipedia]