A (musical note)

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A (musical note)

La or A is the sixth note

Note

In music, the term note has two primary meanings: 1) a sign used in musical notation to represent the relative duration and pitch of a sound; and 2) a pitched sound itself....
of the solfège

Solfege

In music, solf?ge is a pedagogical solmization technique for the teaching of sight-singing in which each note of the score is sung to a special syllable, called a solf?ge syllable ....
. "A" is generally used as a standard for tuning. When the orchestra tunes, the oboe

Oboe

The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois", "hoboy", or "French hoboy"....
plays an "A" and the rest of the instruments tune to match that pitch. Every string instrument in the orchestra has an A string, from which each player can tune the rest of their instrument.

"A" is also used in combination with a number (e.g. A-440) to label the pitch standard.

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Encyclopedia

La or A is the sixth note

Note

In music, the term note has two primary meanings: 1) a sign used in musical notation to represent the relative duration and pitch of a sound; and 2) a pitched sound itself....
of the solfège

Solfege

Oboe

Hertz

The hertz is a measure of frequency per unit of time, or the number of list of cycles per second. It is the SI base unit of frequency in the International System of Units , and is used worldwide in both general-purpose and scientific contexts....
. A lower number equals a lower pitch.

By an international treaty signed in 1939, modern pitch is standardized at A-440

A440

A440 or Concert A is the 440 Hertz tone that serves as the standard for musical pitch . A440 is the musical note A above middle C .Prior to the standardization on 440 Hz, many countries and organizations followed the 435 Hz recommendation the Austrian government made in 1885....
. However, tuning has varied over time, geographical region, or instrument maker. In seventeenth-century Europe

Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
, tunings ranged from about A-374 to A-403, approximately two to three half-steps below A-440. Historical examples exist of instruments, tuning forks, or standards ranging from A-309 to A-455.3, a difference of almost six half-steps. Although the official standard today is A-440, some orchestral groups and chamber groups prefer to tune a little higher, at A-442 or even A-444. Baroque

Baroque

In the the arts, the Baroque was a Western cultural Epoch , starting roughly at the beginning of the 17th century in Rome, Italy. It was exemplified by drama and grandeur in Baroque sculpture, Baroque painting, literature, Baroque dance, and Baroque music....
pitch is usually cited as A-415, which is a half-step lower than modern pitch.

A0 is the lowest note on the standard piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard instrument. Widely used in Western music for solo performance, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to musical composition and rehearsal....
. The octaves follow A1, A2, etc.. A7 is a few pitches lower than C8

Eighth octave C

The musical note C8 is the C two full octaves above soprano high C. The note is one octave above the top of common musical keyboards, but the highest note of an 88-key piano....
, the highest note on the standard piano. The note "A" is not considered to be a certain milestone or mark to hit with voice as, for example, Tenor C is, but it can be extremely demanding in certain octave

Octave

In music, an octave The octave is occasionally referred to as a diapason.The octave above an indicated note is sometimes abbreviated 8va, and the octave below 8vb....
s.

Designation by octave

Scientific Scientific pitch notation Scientific pitch notation is one of several methods that name the notes of the standard Western music chromatic scale by combining a letter-name, accidental , and a number identifying the Pitch 's octave.... Designation	Helmholtz Helmholtz pitch notation Helmholtz pitch notation is a musical system for naming notes of the western music chromatic scale. Developed by the Germany scientist Hermann von Helmholtz, it uses a combination of upper case and lower case letters , and the sub- and super-prime symbols to describe each individual note of the scale.... Designation	Octave Name	Frequency (Hz)
A-1	A???	Subsubcontra	13.75
A0	A??	Subcontra	27.5
A1	A?	Contra	55
A2	A	Great	110
A3	a	Small	220
A4	a'	One-lined	440
A5	a?	Two-lined	880
A6	a'?	Three-lined	1760
A7	a??	Four-lined	3520
A8	a'??	Five-lined	7040
A9	a???	Six-lined	14080
A10	a'"""	Seven-lined	28160

Common scales beginning on A

A Major
A major

A major is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A , B , C? , D , E , F? , and G? . Its key signature has three sharps.Its relative key is F-sharp minor and its parallel key is A minor....
: A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A
A Natural Minor: A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A
A Harmonic Minor: A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A
A Melodic Minor: A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A
A Dorian: A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A

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by Barrie Heaton