Simply...how can I tell??

I play with friends and they say to me what key is such and such a song in.....and I have no idea....they all know???....how can I tell...I´m no a pro but...I would love to know how to tell what key a song is in....and tips or tricks???

I feel should know this:crying::bawl:

I could give you a mathematical formula to do it, but the truth is "I just know, too". But HOW I know is what you want to know, right? No? Okay, nevermind, check it out.


The key of the song is the same as the root of the chord that "feels like home." Like all the other chords kinda add tension to your neck muscles, and the only one that doesn't do that is this one chord. Good bet that's probably it.
If there are 3 major chords in a song, they're usually based off the 1st, 4th, and 5th notes in a major scale, respectively - this gives rise to the comments about the 1chord, the 4 chord, and so on. If TWO of these chords are a whole step apart, the remaining one is probably the 1 chord, whose root is the key you want.
When you get used to this idea, you'll find the three minor chords - 2, 3, and 6 - that are also based off of the major scale. You can use these to help narrow it down as well.

When a band member says "Key of G" or at a blues jam someone shouts out "A witha IV-V turn around" what is being transmitted are preset relationships among certain notes.

The "key" is known as the root note. In western music, certain tones have sonic relationships that have been noted in specific ways, the "key" being the center of those relationships.

I suggest study the following thread since it will help you to understand those relationships and help you figure out what key anything is in:http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=125519

The quickest way without having access to the sheet music, imo, is to hear it. Learn as many songs as you can by ear, and listen for common resolutions and cadences. A V-I (perfect cadence) is often a dead giveaway.

The chord a song ends on is often the root chord of the key. A good deal of the time the first chord in the song also indicates the key. But not always! Many songs start and end on chords that, while they are part of the key, are not the root (I)chord.

for most bass riffs, the start/end note likely indicates the key.

also many songs change keys as they progress (though they usually return to the 'home key')

To really begin to understand keys, you need to know
1.) how the major scale is constructed
2.) how major, minor, and diminished chords are constructed based on the major scale
3.) then learn to look at chords as those roman numerals (I-ii-iii-IV-V-vi-vii(dim) ), which helps you think in terms of how each chord functions within a given key.


unfortunately most academic explanations of Keys simply have you memorizing keys signature sharps and flats and the cricle of fifths, and leave the important harmonic information for the advanced class. Backwards and less useful for us non- classical musicians.

that said, if you start learning to read notation, it can be really,really helpful in understanding keys, and music in general.

Except for Blues and simple Pop/Rock songs change key so looking at the key signature, or any single chord isn't going to tell you current key. Most of the time you can look at the chord changes, see the relationship between chords and figure out the key, or current key. For more complete answer you would factor in the melody too.

You need a basic understanding of Harmony & Theory on diatonic harmony. There you learn how different types of chords are typically used. so get a book on basic theory and start reading. Once you start getting into harmonized scales then start analyze tunes you already know. That helps relate the sound to the theory. So no simple answer it takes study and practice.

One quickie that you can try to use now is look for dominant chords (7th chords.) Many times they are the V chord of the key. But there many exceptions to that, but its a starting point if you don't know. So if you see E7 chord you guess you are in key of A. E7 is V7 of key of A. If you don't understand what I just said get that theory book now.

All of the above is good and true advice, but the piece that helped me most when I was in your position was: what chord does it end on? If you were playing the song by yourself or in a band, what chord would you finish the song with? Most of the time if that chord is E, you're in the key of E, if it's C you're in C etc. I just wrote a lot of exceptions and explanations of turnarounds and other ways it could be, but I deleted all that. This is what got me through to the next step- the big last chord usually tells you the key. You'll find you'll start "just knowing" pretty quickly too, and when you have found a few songs where this rule doesn't apply you can start figuring out why they're different.

All of the above is good and true advice, but the piece that helped me most when I was in your position was: what chord does it end on? If you were playing the song by yourself or in a band, what chord would you finish the song with? Most of the time if that chord is E, you're in the key of E, if it's C you're in C etc. I just wrote a lot of exceptions and explanations of turnarounds and other ways it could be, but I deleted all that. This is what got me through to the next step- the big last chord usually tells you the key. You'll find you'll start "just knowing" pretty quickly too, and when you have found a few songs where this rule doesn't apply you can start figuring out why they're different.

what about modulations...your method works for the final key the song could be in...

personally I agree with those who say any and all cadences. the cadences will tell you any key you're in, any temporary key areas, etc.

however, listening for the last chord of the song is usually a cadence too, so that could work as long as the song is in the same key throughout.