what key ????

[bluesfloyd]

hi guys,
when i hear a song on the radio/cd, how do i find the key of that song???? if i held a guitar tuner near to the radio would that give me the key???? many thanks guys for your time to answer my post.

all the best, bluesfloyd.

 

[ginormous]

Re: what key ????

Some songs are easier than others. For the more intricate tunes, the keys may change from verse to chorus, or slip back and forth from major to minor, etc.

For example, a friend put this question to me: "In what key is the song 'Sweet Home Alabama', D major... or G major?"
For that song, it works both ways.

Most guitar tuners only work on one tone at a time; the harmonies coming from an entire song would cause the indicator light to slide back and forth, with no clear answer.

I'd get familiar with a small, inexpensive keyboard, and simply pick out the notes as best as possible.

 

[ItsaBass]

Re: what key ????

The guitar tuner will do nothing for you.

The only way to figure the key is by ear. I don't mean you just listen and then you know – that's having perfect pitch, which is rare (and almost entirely useless anyhow). I mean you find the "home" chord around which the melody and changes are based, using your ears and an instrument.

"Sweet Home Alabama" is in D (mixolydian), which is exactly relative to G (major). Just because it is relative to a 5-4-1 progression in G does not mean that it could be in G. Listen to the various melodies in the song. They all use D as their "home" note. The song is a 1-b7-4 progression in D.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: what key ????

I would just look it up online. Easy!

 

[DankStar]

Re: what key ????

"Sweet Home Alabama" is in D (mixolydian), which is exactly relative to G (major).

Wouldn't E minor be the relative key to G major? Or are you saying the same thing in another way?

 

[ItsaBass]

what key ????

Wouldn't E minor be the relative key to G major? Or are you saying the same thing in another way?

Every key has many relative keys. G major, E minor, and D mixolydian are all relative modes. But all that means is that they contain the same notes. It does not mean that they are "the same key."

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: what key ????

hi guys,
when i hear a song on the radio/cd, how do i find the key of that song???? if i held a guitar tuner near to the radio would that give me the key???? many thanks guys for your time to answer my post.

all the best, bluesfloyd.

This stuff is not something you can learn overnight. It will take a while. Have a think about getting some lessons from a good improviser. It will save you a lot of time and frustration in the long run. Jazz guys tend to have this stuff worked out in much more detail and clarity than most other guys, but that's not to say you can't find a good teacher who specializes in other genres.

 

[bluesfloyd]

Re: what key ????

hi guys,
big thanks for all above posts, big help,

all ths best, bluesfloyd,

 

[koshikas]

Re: what key ????

I'll probably not make sense, but here is how I go about it. I think by now u can easily figure out if u are slipping off key. If so, in the major or minor scale when u play a note over a chord, if u find it off key then that would mean that notes on either side frets are in key. So playing bit of scale patterns and figuring in which positions u land most notes in key u might be able to find the key. It is not fool proof when it comes to the aforementioned key changing songs. But for simple songs with some getting used to it works for me

 

[Robert Delahunt]

Re: what key ????

This is something that I can only do by ear. However, sliding your finger over the low E until you find some of the chords in the song. There is also Google: sometimes people post the chords.

You could take Ear Training at a music college: that might help. Seriously, as a music major myself, my opinion is that this is just something that you either have or don't, but that you can develop if you train.

 

[DankStar]

Re: what key ????

Every key has many relative keys. G major, E minor, and D mixolydian are all relative modes. But all that means is that they contain the same notes. It does not mean that they are "the same key."

Apparently it's a hot debate for that song! I like how one guy in the below thread put it: g major with D as the tonal center.

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=845618

 

[ItsaBass]

Re: what key ????

It's in D, though.

 

[Robert Delahunt]

Re: what key ????

The guitar tuner will do nothing for you.

The only way to figure the key is by ear. I don't mean you just listen and then you know – that's having perfect pitch, which is rare (and almost entirely useless anyhow). I mean you find the "home" chord around which the melody and changes are based, using your ears and an instrument.

"Sweet Home Alabama" is in D (mixolydian), which is exactly relative to G (major). Just because it is relative to a 5-4-1 progression in G does not mean that it could be in G. Listen to the various melodies in the song. They all use D as their "home" note. The song is a 1-b7-4 progression in D.

Precisely. It's not just the chords, it's the tonal "home."

 

[guitfiddle]

Re: what key ????

It's in D, though.

The published sheet music is in G starting on a V chord, and Ed King, who wrote it, insists that it's in G. That's the resolution chord of each measure, and then it goes back to a D at the beginning of the next measure. Anyway, the notes are 100% the same for g ionian or d mixolydian, so in the end it really does not make a bit of difference.