You've Got the Tune -- Do You Have the Key??

[scrubber]

When there are singers involved, the sky's the limit when it comes to the key your're going to use for a given song. But what about instrumentals? For some fiddle tunes, there appears to be only one 'right' key. I imagine this is due to the way the open strings of the fiddle are employed when performing the tune. Yet, there are some tunes that seem to be more flexible. Sally Goodin is an example recently brought to my attention. Today I have heard this tune played in G, A and B-flat! Then there is Cripple Creek -- I've heard his played in both G and A. There are some tunes that have one specific key associated with them -- Arkansas Traveler is 'supposed' to be in D, and Golden Slippers in G (although I favor D, since I like to play the "B" section of the tune down an octave as a variation).

Some tunes seem to be identical, except for the key they're played in. Cherokee Shuffle is virtually identical to Lost Indian, except the former is played in A and the latter in D. The same can be said about Back up and Push and Rubber Dolly, the former in C, the latter in A, and also Flop Eared mule (D) and Asheland (G).

While this might be economical in terms of learning the tunes (two for the price of one ), it makes for a little confusion when it comes to trying to play them in jams. Personally, I've been in jams where Back Up and Push was unkown ( ) but everyone could play Rubber Dolly, and so it goes.....

There are, of course, many other examples. I've found that sometimes the 'unsual' keys exhibit some idiomatic characteristic of the fiddle that becomes lost when an attempt is made to put the tune into a 'normal' Bluegrass key. Ultimately, the key that makes the instrument '"shine" is probably the best choice, even if it is a bit unusual......

[dmiller]

When there are singers involved, the sky's the limit when it comes to the key you're going to use for a given song. But what about instrumentals? For some fiddle tunes, there appears to be only one 'right' key. I imagine this is due to the way the open strings of the fiddle are employed when performing the tune. Yet, there are some tunes that seem to be more flexible. Sally Goodin is an example recently brought to my attention. Today I have heard this tune played in G, A and B-flat! Then there is Cripple Creek -- I've heard his played in both G and A. There are some tunes that have one specific key associated with them -- Arkansas Traveler is 'supposed' to be in D, and Golden Slippers in G (although I favor D, since I like to play the "B" section of the tune down an octave as a variation).

(snip out of the quote)

There are, of course, many other examples. I've found that sometimes the 'unusual' keys exhibit some idiomatic characteristic of the fiddle that becomes lost when an attempt is made to put the tune into a 'normal' Bluegrass key. Ultimately, the key that makes the instrument '"shine" is probably the best choice, even if it is a bit unusual......

Hey there Scrbr.
I hear you about *certain* keys for certain tunes. Have always done Soldier's Joy in D,
but a lot of banjo pickers do it like Earl and John McEuen did (on the Circle album), in C.
Pike County Breakdown is an *A* tune, and one particular banjo picker up here knows it very well.
Trouble is -- his banjo has no fifth string capo, so he picks it in *G*.
By the time he's done picking it, I've only kinda have it figured out!

Fisher's Hornpipe is one that sounds good it two different keys.
Played either in the key of D or F. I learned it in the key of D.
Heard if done in the key of F up at the Cotton Fiddle contest.
Sounded nice, but was hard (for me) to learn, though it sounds really good after playing it in D.
Playing it first in the key of D, then modulating to the key of F, is a really cool segue.

The New England Chestnuts (with Rodney Miller) did this,
but they put the *F* version first, before they did it in D.
It didn't sound quite as nice that way.

I usually choose the *easier keys*, that I learned them in.

[scrubber]

Fisher's Hornpipe is one that sounds good it two different keys.
Played either in the key of D or F.

Try playing it (with another fiddler, of course) in both keys at once!

There are enough common notes between the keys to almost make it sound like a twin fiddle arrangement with some 'funky' cross-relations added.

(Kinda like Bill Monroe playing Get up John with the paired mandolin strings a minor third apart).

[Jugband]

Some tunes seem to be identical, except for the key they're played in. Cherokee Shuffle is virtually identical to Lost Indian, except the former is played in A and the latter in D.

Virtually, but not exactly. If you heard both of them played back to back by someone who knows both correctly, the difference would be obvious. It's a somewhat-subtle difference, though, and only in the "B" part, if I recall right.

I might get so that I could do both tunes (they are both in the Fiddler's Fakebook), but for now "Lost Indian" does all I need it to do. That's the one that more people seem to be familiar with, around where I live.

Also, there are two versions of "Lost Indian" in the Fiddler's Fakebook, one in "D", and a more complicated one that's in "A", which I haven't looked at. I've heard several people do the tune, and always in "D".

[Jugband]

There are, of course, many other examples. I've found that sometimes the 'unsual' keys exhibit some idiomatic characteristic of the fiddle that becomes lost when an attempt is made to put the tune into a 'normal' Bluegrass key. Ultimately, the key that makes the instrument '"shine" is probably the best choice, even if it is a bit unusual......

Tunes tend to be done in the best key for the instrument that drives them.

Heavily banjo-driven tunes tend to be done in "G", "A", or any other key that's reachable with a capo and will let the banjo player use what he knows in "G".

If you notice, guitar-driven tunes (and there are few of those in Bluegrass) tend to be done in "C", or capoed-up from "C" because that's a good guitar key.

Some of the guys who do really hot crosspicking can't do a large number of songs in anything other than "C", or "C" capoed-up, because the notes just aren't reachable unless you're in "C".

You'll even see Tony Rice doing that a lot. He's always tended to capo at the third fret or second fret and play out of "C" formations, and least when he was doing Bluegrass.

Mother Maybelle always played "Wildwood Flower" in the key of "G", but she did it way up the neck with a capo, so she could be actually be playing out of chord-formations in "C".

And fiddle... well because of how the strings are arranged, and because so much Bluegrass/Old Time never much gets out of first position, "D" and "A" are the easiest keys for a fiddler to play in.

You have open strings within the scale on both sides of the root-note string, not only for droning against, but you have lots of useable notes available for melody and double-stops on both of those other strings without getting out of First Position.

Also, a song which is in either of those keys can often be played in the other key by simply moving over to a different starting string, using all the same fingering.

That tends to put fiddle-driven tunes in one of those two keys pretty often. I have the impression that more fiddle tunes done (and notated) in "A" than any other key, when it comes to Bluegrass, Old Time, and Irish fiddle.

The key of "G" probably comes in at third place.

You can start your "G" scale from the "G" note on the "D" string, and still have it not be too dificult, though you have fewer open notes, making it marginally more difficult that "A" and "D".