Writing songs to meet vocal abilities, using sharp or flat keys

[BoneDigger]

This may seem like a strange question, but is there anything inherently wrong with writing/recording songs in a sharp or flat key? For instance if I determin that Am# is a better key for my voice than either Am or Bm, is there anything inherently wrong with capoing up one fret and playing/recording in the Am position? I guess my question is, are natural keys considered better from a tonal perspective that flat or sharp keys?

[JonPR]

The key that suits your voice will be different for every song. It depends on the range of the melody. I.e., you obviously need to be able to reach the highest and the lowest notes easily - but the keynote can be anywhere within that range.

But yes, for any specific song, you should write in the best key for your voice, using a capo if that makes it easier for the guitar. You even re-tune if you want - e.g., if you like G shapes on the guitar but it turns out the best key for you (for that song) is G flat. Tune down a half-step!

[Chipotle]

You have to consider both how your voice sounds and how the guitar sounds in that key. But sharps or flats in themselves don't make a difference (all keys except C have at least one anyway!).

The short answer is, do whatever you need to do. But a song might benefit from singing in a different key--either the melody is out of your range, or you purposely want to be singing in your lower or higher register for effect. Then consider how the guitar sounds. Capo'ed up won't sound the same as different chord voicings played elsewhere on the neck, so you have to consider the sound of the guitar you want as well.

As an example: I play Willie Nelson's "Sad Songs and Waltzes". My voice doesn't go quite as low as Willie's, but I still wanted to keep the open-A voicings, so I just capo'ed up one fret to A# (or Bb). Sounds fine. If I needed to go much higher, though, I don't think the guitar would sound quite right, so I'd probably play different voicings in B or C, rather than capo.

[egordon99]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

This may seem like a strange question, but is there anything inherently wrong with writing/recording songs in a sharp or flat key? For instance if I determin that Am# is a better key for my voice than either Am or Bm, is there anything inherently wrong with capoing up one fret and playing/recording in the Am position? I guess my question is, are natural keys considered better from a tonal perspective that flat or sharp keys?

No. (Need to add more characters)

[egordon99]

Was Chopin "wrong" when he wrote his first Nocturne in Bbm?

Was Tori Amos wrong when she wrote "Winter" in Ebm/Gb?

[Brent Hahn]

It could matter if you plan on having other people play with you. Either because of the range of the instrument or the facility of the player.

[Silly Moustache]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

This may seem like a strange question, but is there anything inherently wrong with writing/recording songs in a sharp or flat key? For instance if I determin that Am# is a better key for my voice than either Am or Bm, is there anything inherently wrong with capoing up one fret and playing/recording in the Am position? I guess my question is, are natural keys considered better from a tonal perspective that flat or sharp keys?

Short answer, : no, there is nothing whatsoever wrong with either changing the key - or singing in a sharp or flat key.

Were you to choose to sing a famous operatic piece, or German lieder, the orchestra etc., might have an issue, but for popular music, no.

btw Am# is not really a key, perhaps you mean Bbm?

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

This may seem like a strange question, but is there anything inherently wrong with writing/recording songs in a sharp or flat key? For instance if I determin that Am# is a better key for my voice than either Am or Bm, is there anything inherently wrong with capoing up one fret and playing/recording in the Am position? I guess my question is, are natural keys considered better from a tonal perspective that flat or sharp keys?

Some of us have limited range, and the best thing to do for self-written or cover tunes is to sing them without an instrument to figure out what your natural key is. Use whatever key that matches your vocal range, capoing if necessary.

If I'm singing and there are other musicians accompanying me they simply match whatever key I choose to use. All my jam mates are seasoned musicians, so it doesn't matter to them.

[Brent Hahn]

Originally Posted by Silly Moustache

btw Am# is not really a key...?

A#m is. In practice you'll usually see it as Bbm since 5 flats are easier to contend with than 7 sharps. But if the bride's drunken uncle stumbles onto
the bandstand and wants to sing "White Wedding" in A sharp minor, I think I'll know what to do.

[Gordon Currie]

Shockingly, physics doesn't seem to care about specific keys or frequencies!

Unless you subscribe to arcane beliefs like specific frequencies correspond to specific cosmic meanings, then there is no inherent tonal difference between (e.g.) C and B.

(However, individual instruments can have resonances that *MIGHT* produce small yet noticeable differences between two adjacent keys.)

[egordon99]

Originally Posted by Gordon Currie

Shockingly, physics doesn't seem to care about specific keys or frequencies!

Unless you subscribe to arcane beliefs like specific frequencies correspond to specific cosmic meanings, then there is no inherent tonal difference between (e.g.) C and B.

(However, individual instruments can have resonances that *MIGHT* produce small yet noticeable differences between two adjacent keys.)

While I totally understand the physics, I still find Db "moves" me more than regular plain old C

I love playing in Db on the piano.

Not sure why :-)

[CASD57]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

This may seem like a strange question, but is there anything inherently wrong with writing/recording songs in a sharp or flat key? For instance if I determin that Am# is a better key for my voice than either Am or Bm, is there anything inherently wrong with capoing up one fret and playing/recording in the Am position? I guess my question is, are natural keys considered better from a tonal perspective that flat or sharp keys?

Where ever my capo ends up that's what the song is in, probably more flats and sharps lol

[Robin, Wales]

As has been said, the short answer is "no, it doesn't matter what key you write or sing a song in".

The long answer probably requires a PhD or two and is way above my pay grade! Save to say that there was a series of short programmes on Radio 4 a couple of years ago where they went through each key and various composers, conductors and musicians talked about the classical pieces written in that key and why they may have been written in that key. I think it was called "Key Matters". I can't remember the detail, but, from what I do remember, there was really very limited agreement on anything specific beyond that a piece just seemed to "sound right" in the key it had been written.

[Brent Hahn]

Originally Posted by egordon99

While I totally understand the physics, I still find Db "moves" me more than regular plain old C

I love playing in Db on the piano.

Not sure why :-)

You're not alone in that.

I was in McCabe's, trying out a guitar and hum-strumming my way through "Girl From Ipanema" in E, which was best for my singing range. Some guy across the room said, very quietly, "Y'know, Frank did that in F for a reason."

Now I do it in F.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by Brent Hahn

You're not alone in that.

I was in McCabe's, trying out a guitar and hum-strumming my way through "Girl From Ipanema" in E, which was best for my singing range. Some guy across the room said, very quietly, "Y'know, Frank did that in F for a reason."

Yes, because either (a) it was best for his singing range, and/or (b) F was easier for the horn section in the arrangement, and Frank (who had a range which could easily accommodate that range in a few different keys) was fine with that.

The original (little known) Perry Ribiero recording (1962) was in G.

Joao Gilberto - on the more famous "original" (1964) - sang it in Db; moving to D some years later (in a live version).

Jobim himself sang it (and played it on piano) in F. (And played it on guitar in F when he accompanied Frank, of course.)

There's a whole myth (cultural habits) about the choice of key for that tune: https://youtu.be/OFWCbGzxofU?t=394

In brief, it's not so much that "Frank did that in F for a reason" - it's that most people since then do it in F because Frank did. (They don't care why Frank might have chosen F, it's just become the traditional key (in US jazz covers) because of that.)