Do keys matter?

[YoungCapone]

(Beginner here)I made a simple melody in the piano roll of FL studio and started shifting it up one semitone at a time (keeping the intervals the same). I notice that there was no real difference in how the melody felt as I shifted it up or down. It made me think about why keys or octaves were important. I’ve heard some things about how historically, there were implications involving the way different instruments were made and what not, but in today's day and age does it really matter if we’re making music digitally?? I feel like what’s most important are relationships between notes (intervals). Thoughts???

 

[2GooD Productions]

Chords have root keys, which is usually the lowest frequency note in the chord. If you play notes that dont fit within the current chord then they sound wrong, they are off key.

You also have modes..

Modes: What are they and how do I use them?

From their meaning to their history in Western music, here's an easy guide to modes.

www.classicfm.com

When you pitch shift you are changing the root key, this affects which notes sound right within that keys scale and which ones dont.

Training your ears to be able to distinguish key is one of the first steps in music production, you will eventually be able to hear notes which are off.

When trying to make basslines at first, it can be hard to hear if its in key, so a trick i used to do is to play a piano patch in the middle octave to how I wanted my bass, which makes hearing if its in key a lot easier, then Id transpose the notes down a couple octaves and change the patch to my chosen bass.

 

[thedreampolice]

I won't make a difference to one part in a melodic context soloed by itself, but keys make a massive difference in the scheme of the overall composition.