Key Matters - Series 2 - A Major

In this second series of Key Matters, presenter Ivan Hewett explores the question of why certain musical keys have become associated with particular moods. For example, why is A major almost always employed by composers to write optimistic, even ecstatic music? And how has E minor become the key of choice for portraying menace and tragedy? In this first programme, Ivan meets pianist and conductor Jonathan Cohen to discuss the open optimism of A major. The music ranges from Mozart to Abba with some Carol King and Dvorak along the way.