| Relative key | C-sharp major |
|---|---|
| Parallel key | A-sharp major →enharmonic:B-flat major |
| Dominant key | E-sharp minor →enharmonic:F minor |
| Subdominant key | D-sharp minor |
| Enharmonic key | B-flat minor |
| Component pitches | |
| A♯, B♯, C♯, D♯, E♯, F♯, G♯ | |
A-sharp minor is aminor musical scale based onA♯, consisting of the pitches A♯,B♯,C♯,D♯,E♯,F♯, andG♯. Itskey signature has sevensharps.[1]
Itsrelative major isC-sharp major (or enharmonicallyD-flat major). Itsparallel major, A-sharp major, is usually replaced byB-flat major, since A-sharp major's threedouble-sharps make it impractical to use. Theenharmonic equivalent of A-sharp minor isB-flat minor,[1] which only contains five flats and is often preferable to use.
The A-sharpnatural minor scale is:
Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale are written in with accidentals as necessary. The A-sharpharmonic minor andmelodic minor scales are:
InChristian Heinrich Rinck's 30 Preludes and Exercises in all major and minor keys, Op. 67, the 16th Prelude and Exercise andMax Reger'sOn the Theory of Modulation on pp. 46~50 are in A-sharp minor.[2] In Bach'sPrelude and Fugue in C-sharp major, BWV 848, a brief section near the beginning of the piece modulates to A-sharp minor.
Intuning systems where the number of notes per octave is not a multiple of 12, notes such as A♯ and B♭ are notenharmonically equivalent, nor are the corresponding key signatures. For example, the key of A-sharp minor, with seven sharps, is equivalent to B-flat minor in 12-tone equal temperament, but in19-tone equal temperament, it is equivalent to B-double flat minor instead, with 12 flats. Therefore, A-sharp minor with 7 sharps, which has been rarely used in the existing 12-tone temperament, may be absolutely necessary.
Thescale degree chords of A-sharp minor are:
