Which keys are you playing in?

[huw]

I'm taking a survey...



I want to know which keys people are playing in. NOT which keys people CAN play in, which keys they DO play in (big difference).

So.....

What I'm asking people to do is this:

If you gig: just take your most recent set list and list the keys of the songs on it.

If you don't gig: can you take ten songs (or thereabouts) that you currently play/practice often.

That's all I need you to do - I don't need to know what the songs are, what style they are, or what standard of player you are (some results may prompt me to ask a few questions, who knows?)

If you can, can you identify the key by key note and scale - eg A major; G blues; E dorian; D minor etc etc

Why am I doing this?

Actually that's a long answer, so without trying to be a tease, I'll leave that for now (if you know the sorts of things that I'm interested in you may be able to guess ).

Thanks for your cooperation & participation, & to get things started, I'll go first with my own last set list.

D mixolydian
A major
D modal
E mixolydian
A mixolydian
E major/minor (mixed)
A blues
E mixodorian
D major
E mixolydian
D minor/dorian (mixed)
E blues/A blues (key change)
E blues
A minor
A mixodorian
A mixodorian/major
B major/mixolydian
A major
E mixolydian
G major
D major
E minor
A major

[LiveSimply]

Huw, I'm a bit embarrassed given the great variety above, but mine are a bit more basic. Below are the keys of the songs I'm currently trying to learn.

Not for any live performance or anything, just home practice thing:

A Minor
Bb Blues
C Blues
C Blues
C Minor
C Major
G Blues
G Minor
E Minor
E Blues

Also, I'm trying to learn How Insensitive (Insensatez), a jazz standard written by Antonio Carlos Jobim, which I think is in D Minor, but I'm really not very certain as to the exact mode

[huw]

That's great - I'm after what people are actually doing, that's all.

[HogmanA]

*edit*dont want this posted actually, sorry, it suddenly just didnt feel right. probably being stupid, but as its not just mine I'll have to err on the side of caution

[zontar]

Mostly I avoid Eb and Bb--but as for actually using?

Right now E, A, C and D major along with Am, Em & Bm

But I'll mix it up for fun sometimes

[huw]

As of this morning my survey looks like this:

149 views
2 people have posted a list
1 bizzare comment I can't begin to understand



So the other 146 people don't play?

C'mon guys, I know doing a survey isn't as as "Troy Rockstar's Play Licks Faster" YouTube series, but I was hoping for a better take up than this.

Anyone else?

[Jody]

I wish I was playing in the Florida Keys,,,,

[GuitarToneFreak]

Mixodorian?

For God's sake, that sounds like a field of Science!

I'm not that educated in the realm of key names yet, so here's what I typically play in

A major

E major

F# (one of my favorite keys)

D major

G

E minor


I believe those are my main chords - the ones I use the most are A, E, and F#

[loveboat]

G major for 97% of the set list.

[huw]

Thanks guys...

and a special for Jody

[Jody]

Originally Posted by huw

thanks guys...

And a special For jody

But I am being serious...

[huw]

Originally Posted by Jody

But I am being serious...

I'll see you there!

[Jody]

Originally Posted by huw

I'll see you there!

I'll be waitin'

[HogmanA]

sorry for stupid post - the band I'm in is creating unique sounding music, I knew it was because of how we harmonize things but I'd never really analyzed it, or even done the simple exercise of seeing what keys they are in. The music is fairly complex with many key changes, so when I wrote them down in my original post in the way you had done, it was suddenyl very revealing - to the point it became very clear how we were making the sound we are (even to me), and I just didnt know if that should be published to the world.
I really did want to contribute, and whatever its for sounds really interesting.
. sorry for stupid post - I just panicked and wanted to get the post deleted before I couldnt.
here are the starting keys of the songs.

D minor
D minor
D major
G minor
Bb minor
E major
E major
G major
B minor
G minor

[huw]

^^^^^^

Thanks

[JonR]

Here's the keys for the set list for my current band, arranged in order of most common:

G major - 6 (all major key, no blues)
E major - 6 (blues 5; non-blues 1)
A major - 5 (blues 3; non-blues 2)
C major - 4 (blues 3; non-blues 1)
A minor - 3 (including one with a C major chorus, and another with an A major chorus)
E minor - 2 (1 blues, the other with a G major chorus)
D major - 1
F major - 1
G minor - 1

The "blues" ones will vary from Chicago-style tunes to more "mixo-dorian" Chuck Berry-type stuff - I wouldn't like to make any finer distinction than that. "Non-blues" are straight major key sequences.

There are plenty of other songs in the pad, but they wouldn't change that order much. (We have more in all the above keys, but only that one in F, and none in D minor. It's possible the A major ones would overtake the E and G majors...)

The keys are all dictated by our singer, who plays acoustic guitar and never uses a capo! He has quite a wide-ranging voice, so doesn't usually change the keys of originals (even when he really should...)
The songs are mostly covers of 50s rock'n'roll, blues, some Dylan, a handful of originals (by the singer).

For comparison, here's the score for the setlist for a soul band I played with until recently. Female singer, keys chosen according to whatever suited her that wasn't too difficult for the sax player and guitarist. Because her voice was low for a woman, and we often covered male-vocal originals, we'd frequently transpose from the original keys.

C major - 4
G major - 4 (inc 1 blues)
Bb major - 3 (inc 2 blues)
D major - 3
F major - 3
A minor - 3 (inc 1 dorian)
E major - 2
C minor - 2
D minor - 2
Eb major - 1
E minor / dorian - 1
G minor / dorian - 1

Naturally, being soul/R&B, many of the major key ones would feature bluesy elements (or modal interchange) without being blues as such.

The minor key ones generally featured the usual mix of natural, dorian, or harmonic minor chords. Just 3 of which were (just about) wholly dorian.

In jazz groups I've played with, of course, there'd be a heavy preponderance of the keys of F, Bb, Eb and Ab, and their relative minors.

[huw]

Jon, thank you for a very full & detailed answer.

The background info covers just about all the "follow up" questions I had up my sleeve re: style, who gets final say on key, instrumentation etc.



Now I just need around about 100 more of you guys to step forwards...

[Jessenoah]

I am ashamed, I always noodle in E or D

you guys noodle everywhere!

[River]

A blues
E blues
E major
E blues
E major
E minor
A major
B major
E major
E blues
E blues
E major
E major
G major
A major
E minor
E blues
E major
E major
G major
E major
C blues

I could say I want you to be able to see the mean and average, but the truth is I'm too lazy to remove the duplicates.

[huw]

Current status: 260 views, but a lot less than 260 set lists.

C'mon folks, it's easy, it won't take long, and it'll keep an old man happy.

(Do some of you not know what keys you're playing in - is that it? )

[River]

Latest addition, another Em. Love this progression:

Em, G, A, C, B7, Em, B7

Chorus: G, Em, A, D7

[huw]

Thanks River.

I see someone's playing...

[HogmanA]

Managed to remember songs from an old band. I didnt write any of the songs - I was brought in afterward to play guitar.
Music was jangly pop/rock, written by guitar playing singer. Bizzare thing is that there's no minor keys, I can't recall a single minor song. Not a set list as such, I just tried to remember 10 songs we played live.

G major
E major
G major
D major
E major
A major
E major
D major
E major
D major/ D mixolydian choruses (this in the base harmony of the song, not what I was doing)

[5F6-A]

major and minor

A, Bb, B, C, D, Eb, E, F, G, Ab generally

[AngryHatter]

Bb

For Blues
C major
C minor
G major
G minor

Originals
C major
A minor


Lots of Bb

[Thumpalumpacus]

Major blues/pentatonics: A, G, D
Minor blues/pentatonic: E, F#, E, B, G, C#
Ionian: G, C, D
Aeolian: C#, D
Dorian, Mixolydian: G, D, B
Phrygian Dom: E
Melodic major: A

I'm not in a band right now, so that's not a set-list. That's mostly songs I'm playing around the house, and some noodling keys.

[huw]

Thank you folks!

More?

[River]

Originally Posted by huw

More?

Bell Bottom Blues (C/A?).

[huw]

Originally Posted by AngryHatter

...Lots of Bb

Are you playing with any brass section? (Just wondering, because this is the first real diversion from the "guitar friendly" keys).

[AngryHatter]

No, but it suits vocals and a bunch of jazz standards.
Bill Withers - Use Me, for example.

I used to have a C Major alto sax - weirdest sax ever.