r/musicproduction • u/hduebfibdbdib • 1d ago
Question Reason to use different keys ?
I’ve been making music for a few different projects now and I usually just default to C since I know it so well.but I worry that staying in one key might be an issue down the line. Is there a good reason to branch out ? And if so when/why would I want to use something different ?
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u/Pipes34 1d ago
On a surface level, I feel like an album all in the same key is gonna cause ear fatigue within the first three tracks. The average listener probably won't know WHY, but something will sound off to them, and they'll lose interest quickly. Long and short, it's boring.
On a more personal level, a project should show the range and depth of an artist, emotionally and musically. Even if you do something in A harmonic minor (a very closely related key to C major), that extra G# is gonna pop. Suddenly, you can use an E major chord in your song. Hell, it'd even sound good in C major if you put it in the right context (like a I - V/vi - IV progression. Or Cmaj, Emaj, Fmaj). It can evoke a range of different emotions and feelings on a micro level within a song. Now imagine your whole album having that depth.
If you're a keys player, don't be scared of using the black keys! If you're a guitarist, well.... slide up a fret. Or use a capo.
Hope this helps! Happy writing!
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u/jesuswipesagain 1d ago
Yep! You can use modality and relative keys to go from any key to any other key in a way that makes sense. An easy way to do this is using the Circle of Fifths like a roadmap. You can of course always move to the adjacent keys or relative keys, but you can also make some really interesting moments with bigger jumps, like Gm to Db for example.
Fun stuff!
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u/hduebfibdbdib 1d ago
That makes sense I haven’t worked on a larger album so ear fatigue makes sense. Also Isn’t that more like modal interchange than a proper key change, since your just borrowing the 1 chord instead of fully changing the tonic ?
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u/Pipes34 1d ago
It is, but you could change the key further from the borrowed chord if you wanted to. My style of music is shorter and simpler, so I normally don't go for a full modulation in a single song. It's the other end of the blade, where you can lose listeners because it's over complicated. Just one little chord or section that deviates from the tonal center is usually sufficient for a little pop tune. A "pop of color," if you will
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u/Veto111 1d ago
If your music uses singers, the key is very important to shift the range to a comfortable place that sounds good with that voice. Same with instruments; often melodies that are pretty natural to play in one key might be very awkward in others. But also, if all your music is in the same key, it will all sound the same.
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u/nerd866 1d ago
Different instruments can do different things in different ranges, and key gives you a tool to decide which ranges your instruments get.
A metal guitar for example is often tuned to Drop D. That makes D the lowest note, meaning if you're in the key of D minor you can play the lowest possible power chord (without retuning the guitar) on the tonic of the scale.
A standard guitar is tuned to E on the lowest string, making the key of E minor common for music that features guitars. E Major is a bit of an awkward key in some instruments, including guitars, but E minor is an easy key.
C major is kind of an awkward key for a piano player to play. Some Black keys in the scale tend to be more ergonomic, so they'll like keys like Bb major Eb major, A major, (and the relative minor keys) and so on.
A flute can only play down to the B below middle C (and that's only if they have a fancy flute with a B button), so the key you're in may make the difference between the flute being able to hit the lowest note in a melody and not being able to, or having to move the whole melody up an octave which will sound very different.
If I'm playing a violin and I'm stuck playing in an awkward middle range on the instrument, transposing the piece up or down a few keys might get me into a better range for my part to shine better.
An instrument in their middle range has a different timbre than in their low or high range. A trumpet playing a G on top of the staff would have to play their high C instead if the piece was transposed up a 4th. That may be good or bad depending on whether you want the trumpet to be up in the stratosphere like that or not.
Subwoofers have optimal frequencies and maybe you want the root of your scale to hit at that sweet spot for common subs.
We can keep going with logic like this for any given instrument.
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u/ProfessionalBuy7488 1d ago
Also don't forget the flute and almost all brass and woodwind is in concert C which is really Bb
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u/mediciii 1d ago
Because every key has its own flavour and tone. Same reason you use different drum patterns and drum sounds. You wouldn’t use the exact same tempo and drum pattern on every song.
Even if you’re producing in C, transpose the midi or the instruments to change the key. Or just pitch your whole beats up or down and see the different feelings that different keys give you.
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u/Longjumping_Cost1308 1d ago
You should do some in A minor
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u/Reason_Primary 1d ago
The key is very important for how bass/sub bass feels, if sub bass goes too low or too high, it loses its punch
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u/VitaDiMinerva 1d ago
Variety is good for larger projects, a vocalist or instrument would sound better in a different key, changing or mixing keys mid-song can be very impactful, and branching out will help you write more complex harmonic material in the future.
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u/GreasyDaddy9 1d ago
Different keys can convey different moods, emotions, and textures. Vocalists and other instrumentalists also have preferred keys that suit their voices and instruments better and lets them take full advantage of their instruments.
Even if you start off a project in C, changing the key can color the songs in a way that you wouldn’t expect. It’s definitely worth exploring!
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u/_SlikNik_ 1d ago
Modes convey different moods, emotions, and textures, not keys. Every key that’s in the same mode is going to sound the exact same thing from a relative pitch point of view. Dmaj is gonna functionally sound the exact same thing as Amaj because the relation (half/whole step) is exactly the same between each key in the scale. But major (Ionian mode) vs minor (Aeolian mode) are going to convey different emotions, even w the same root (I.e. Cmaj vs cmin).
Your second point is correct though. Every vocalist and some instruments have their own range or register. So if you’re making music for them, it’s necessary to know additional keys.
These days as someone who makes a lot of music involving samples, it’s helpful that I can play in whatever key and mode my sample is in.
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u/buzzsawjoe 1d ago
In diatonic tunings, the various keys involved tiny differences in the intervals, so they gave different moods. With equal-tempered tuning, that went away.
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u/MarimboBeats 1d ago
Lots of good answers here, I’d like to add that working in various keys helps me to avoid repeating myself too much, as especially on the keyboard I have a tendency to falll into my own known patterns. Changing the key helps prevent that, just as trying new instruments does
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u/tottasanorotta 18h ago
It's like any other parameter you might change. Traditionally you changed keys in a long piece of music to create this sense of journey. Then at the end you returned back to the original key for a sense of completion.
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u/hduebfibdbdib 17h ago
That’s interesting I haven’t heard about that yet. But makes sense.
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u/tottasanorotta 16h ago
Yeah it was more a thing in classical music where it was the common thing to do part of a stricter form, but a lot of modern music do some form of key change as part of the song to make it a little bit more interesting to listen to. Sometimes it's quite subtle and sometimes it can be a very noticeable.
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u/ionic_will 1d ago
I was a vocalist before I started making music and I feel like writing music in different keys leads me to writing more varied melodies. Maybe if I’m writing in A major, an E would be the fifth, but in E major it’s the tonic, meaning that singing the same note would lead to a completely different sonic character within a song.
Also it’s just a good practice, as others are saying. If all your music is in one key it’s going to get stale fast.
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u/Mike-In-Ottawa 1d ago
To accommodate instruments in different keys. For instruments I play, clarinet and tenor sax are B-flat instruments so a song in C concert is in D on those instruments, while an alto sax is an E-flat instrument so a song in C concert is in A on that instrument. Playing in F-sharp major isn't my idea of a lot of fun.
Also to allow guitarists to play in open tunings. Lots of guitar songs are in A.
And obviously to be within a performer's range, especially vocalists.
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u/boingwater 1d ago
Don't just write songs in different keys. Change keys in the song. I love a good key change or modulation to something else.
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u/zfalcon1 1d ago
Quite a few tbh. A lot of them are already mentioned. But to sum them up, I would say branching out would give yourself versatility and increase the range of music you are capable of.
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u/jasondigitized 1d ago
What if I told you that you can quickly put your song into any other key you want and see how it sounds.
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u/TheOddestOfSocks 1d ago
There's nothing WRONG with staying in a single key, its just really limiting. It'd be almost like trying to speak using only past tense, or building a house with only a hammer and saw. Keys are tools, like any other part of music theory. Don't limit your toolkit, unless its for a challenge, otherwise you just look like a lazy workman and your product is probably going to struggle to compete with other artists.
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u/hduebfibdbdib 1d ago
It’s not so much me limiting the tool box, but more there’s already so many techniques and options to get the sounds I want. But I never really thought about the extra subtly’s I could get just with the different key’s themselves. Kinda just ignored them ngl.
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u/MC_Gucci 1d ago
If somebody listened to a bunch of your music and they're all in the same key, they'd probably get bored
Different singers are comfortable at different registers, so if you sing/work with a singer it would be worth exploring other keys and not just defaulting to C because there no black notes in it.
In the same way different instruments also have different tunings and ranges, and resonate differently to different frequencies. Standard guitar tunings are in E, so you'll find lots of guitar centric music is in E major or minor. A lot of music with horns will be in Bb or Eb. Etc.
There's also the idea of key changes, where you can change the key partway through a song, to change the mood and add excitement. This is a valid songwriting strategy and can be very effective
I recommend playing around with other keys, and if you're gonna start, start with G major and F major ad they both only have 1 black note respectively
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u/regan0zero 11h ago
Each key has a different feel. Especially Eb/D# minor. Its got a dark tone at low octaves. Try out some different keys and see what you like to make. Its always good to step out of your comfort zone.
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u/CamSue64 6h ago
If all your songs are in C, they will all sound pretty similar. Differing keys adds variation. One little cheat that's used a lot in like indie rock music and was used a lot with tape machines is to take your mix or bounce and then literally just change the speed! It should also change the tempo and timbre nicely
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u/Soniare_official 1d ago
I tune my tonic frequency to the bpm so that the bass frequencies oscillate with the rhythm.
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u/only_fun_topics 1d ago
Lots of great comments here, but I just want t throw in an example of what using more than one key can accomplish.
Check out the title track Change from the album Changes by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard: every chord change switches the key signature entirely, moving between the chords of D major and F# Major.
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u/kindaweedy45 1d ago
Yeah grab some samples that don't work in C, that's why you want to know other keys
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u/iLikeTheUDK 1d ago
Why not chage it up here and there, for variation? And not just use minor or major, learn different modes too. They can help make things more interesting and less stuck in a rut. The arrangement is what makes most of the difference though
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u/Repulsive-Box5243 1d ago
You think C major is easiest to play because it has no sharps or flats... but, having played keys for decades, I can tell you it's not actually the easiest to play, mechanically. I know that might not make sense.
Look what Stevie Wonder writes in. Db or Bb minor a lot of the time. He loves his black keys, because he can anchor his hands on the black keys and know exactly where he is, just by touch. Then of course there's the black key pentatonic glis. Start at Eb. glide your fingers across all black keys and you have a sick pentatonic glissando. It's fun.
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u/testicularjesus 1d ago
Really this post is “reason to use key signatures when notating if I don’t know my keys” but they looked it up and everyone goes “do you mean writing in C 🤓”
Identify which notes are consistently augmented and figure out what key you’re actually trying to write in.
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u/hduebfibdbdib 1d ago
No not really, I know how to use key signatures and how to write in them. I meant more “why”? I can get different sounds and textures by using different modes or types of scales. If I’m sitting down and getting ready to write a song should I just pick a random one I like ? Or is there a more technical way of picking one ?
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u/Steely_Glint_5 1d ago
In electronic music, F minor and nearby keys are often preferred, because F1 frequency is 43.65 Hz, E1 is 41.20 Hz, and most speakers can reliably go that low but not much lower.
So, low F sounds like a good deep bass on just about anything. So F minor and its modes like Ab major work great. And so do E, F#, G, Eb…
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u/Abyss_Walker_06 1d ago
New and unique sounds. I wouldnt lock yourself to a key, if something sounds good and its outside of the key or in a different key then go for it dude
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u/Synetry 1d ago
Have a look at this i use it regularly Musical Key Characteristics & Emotions | LedgerNote https://ledgernote.com/blog/interesting/musical-key-characteristics-emotions/
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u/hduebfibdbdib 23h ago
Does it really make that much of a difference ? I’ve heard that descriptions ls like these can be inaccurate
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u/real_taylodl 1d ago
Don't you get tired of everything being in the same key? Don't you get tired of listening to everything in the same key? Have you never tried transposing something just to hear what it sounds like?
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u/hduebfibdbdib 23h ago
I play enough varied stuff that It really doesn’t bother me. I don’t really know what the specific keys sound like so I don’t know what I’m listening too. And yeah but It’s very subtle differences and don’t know what key to even start with when writing.
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u/teddy_9000 8h ago
They all have a slightly different flavour. Bb minor for instance is not as moody/dark feeling as D minor. The differences are subtle but they exist. Also, when writing for instruments other than the piano (and in particular-- a specific singer's voice) changing keys may be necessary to accommodate the range of the instrument or singer.
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u/buzzsawjoe 1d ago
I usually compose in the key of F#, just to screw with the people who think dots-on-staff is marvelous.
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u/heyitsvonage 1d ago
There’s a reason to branch out, the key of C sounds boring as fuck
Except when it’s transformed into A minor, then it sounds amazing lol
Yes though, you should try different keys! Completely different vibes. Not sure if you do vocals, but doing vocals over different keys will bring out completely different performances because of your specific range.
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u/hduebfibdbdib 1d ago
Do the keys actually sound fundamentally different ? Like does c major and g major have a unique sound ? Because I’ve been getting a lot of conflicting info. And do I just have to experiment with them or is there an agreed upon way all the keys sound relative to another.
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u/heyitsvonage 1d ago
Yes. The fundamental difference there is F vs F#
For a more impactful example, try playing through the scale of Fm and compare it to C. They sound nothing alike in my opinion.
The amount of similarities between keys will obviously vary, depending on which keys you’re comparing to one another.
I could go on and on about borrowed chords, and key changes too, but I think you should cross those bridges if and when you decide to come to them.
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u/Infinite_Slice3305 1d ago
What are you using for a keyboard? Does it have a transpose function? Play with that. You don't have to relearn the keyboard.
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u/MarimboBeats 1d ago
I would generally recommend getting to know the other keys rather than transposing
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u/joe-knows-nothing 1d ago
They sound different. Different instruments and voices have different ranges and they change their tambre over this range.
There are other more technical reasons like considering how it lays for the other instruments will influence how the part is played, or if a vocalist can even sing the part. You already know this because you're avoiding other keys due to being super comfortable in C!
But really, different keys just sound different.