[Adam B]

Not sure if this is the right place for this, but I couldn't find somewhere better. Music is a very complex subject, but one thing I have often observed, at least for myself is that different keys tend to have a different "feel". For example, if you take a song originally in A and drop it to G, I find it has a totally different feeling to it.

Another example. The song "How He Loves", Kim Walker sings it in F#. At our church we key it up 3 half steps and do it in A. For some reason the song sounds way more, majestic for lack of a better word in A than it does in F#.

So I guess the question is, can different keys actually be associated with different "feelings" or is it just a personal taste?

[beanbag]

I think throughout history different keys have been used for different purposes. I mean, obviously there is the difference between major and minor, but I think there are also differences between the keys.

I can think just off the top of my head of a couple of major works that were written in G, and I think one of the reasons is that, at least in my opinion, G is kind of a large and regal-sounding key. it's also a good key for choirs.

the structure and progressions might be the same across different keys, but every note and every chord has a different sound, so I definitely think that it can reasonably said that different keys evoke different reactions or emotions.

[taiko]

I know a conductor and Classical music fan who says they key does make a difference. Most Classical music seems to have the key as part of the song's name its so critical.

[jthomas1600]

Scientifically, I believe the answer is yes. Thanks for peaking my interest. Fascinating stuff on the internet. Here's a few links.

https://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/conte.../298/5601/2167

Music and the Brain

[scared2mosh]

My Theory teacher said that they used to write songs in certain keys to convey specific messages (although I'm not sure how long ago). Like if you wanted the song to be contemplative you would write it in g minor (that's not an actual example).

I am hopefully taking music history over the summer... I've heard it's really interesting.