The Keys

To start off I’m going to look at the keys because the keys are essential to know when figuring out other important aspects such as chord progressions and triads. The key signatures of both pieces are distinctly different. While, Joy to the World is in D major, with no accidentals present, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy is in the key of e minor, with many accidentals. For example in second measure, in the bass clef the A and C are raised a semitone with the first chord and then return to their natural form with the second chord. As well, in the treble clef the D is raised a semitone. This pattern is then repeated in the fourth measure.

Introduction

Musical Links Investigation
For the musical links investigation, the pieces that I will be looking at are Joy to the World by Isaac Watts and Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky. While both pieces today are used around Christmas time, to spread the spirit and cheer of the event, the songs come from distinctly different cultures and time periods. Joy to the World was written during the Baroque era of music in England, as piece written for the church to celebrate the holy aspect of Easter (however at a later date it was decided that it was more of a Christmas piece). Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy however, was written during the Romantic era, during the beginnings of the Russian revolution. The piece was written for the Nutcracker ballet as a part of the Grand Pas de Deux.