What is the first note in Strauss' Also sprach Zarathustra?

Answer 1

The opening note of RichardStrauss' symphonic tone poem "Also Sprach Zarathustra", written in 1896, is played by a pipe organ. The very low C natural is produced by a reed vibrating an air column within a 32 foot length of pipe producing a pitch of 32 cycles per seconds, just into the realm of human pitch differentiation of low sound frequencies. The progression of tones following the opening C natural (all of the following pitches are natural unless otherwise specified) follow the ascending natural harmonic series of C to C (perfect octave), C to G (perfect fifth), G to C (perfect fourth) and the inevitable major/minor dichotomy of western music the C to E natural (major third) and quickly from E natural to E flat (minor). Then the pattern is repeated until the reverse occurs from E flat (minor) to E natural (major). By the way, there is another almost forty minutes of music after the brief introduction made famous by the movie,2001, A Space Odyssey.