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Find a piece of music, in any style, which features a key change. For our purposes, the key change in question can be of any duration—i.e., it can last for a few measures, or a large proportion of the total duration of the piece. The term “key change” should be understood in one or more of the following ways:
a “mode switch” between two keys built on the same tonic. This means either departing from a major key to arrive in its parallel minor (e.g., C Major to C minor), or else, conversely, departing from a minor key to arrive in its parallel major (e.g., F minor to F Major).
a “modulation” from a key built on one tonic pitch to another key built on a different tonic pitch. For example, in popular music, the so-called “Truck Driver’s Gear Shift” up by half step or whole step (e.g., C Major to D Major), or, in classical music, modulation to the dominant (e.g., G Major to D Major) or relative Major (e.g., A minor to C Major).
(If you are struggling to find pieces featuring a key change, the final choruses of power ballads are good places to look, as are many recent entries in the Eurovision Song Contest. In classical music, the first movement of any piece named “sonata” is likely to modulate, and will often feature a change of key signature in the score. Free .pdf files of public domain scores for many classical sonatas are available for download on imslp.org Links to an external site..)
Write a paragraph of at least two hundred words in continuous prose (i.e., no bullet points or incomplete sentences) using the following prompt as a guide:
Name the piece by title and composer/performer.
Describe, briefly, the overall style and mood of the piece, mentioning the lyrical content or dramatic context, if there is one.
Describe the key change. Where in the piece does it happen? (NB: include a time stamp and/or measure number if appropriate.) What type of key change is it? For example: does the piece switch mode, from parallel major to parallel minor, or vice versa? Or does it modulate from a key based on one tonic pitch to another tonic pitch entirely?
How long does the key change last? Does the piece stay in its new key until the end? Does it instead modulate back to the original key? Or does it perhaps go somewhere else entirely?
What expressive purpose, if any, do you think the key change serves? For example: if the piece involves a mode switch from parallel major to parallel minor or vice versa, does the music sound particularly triumphant or tragic? When dealing with a modulation to a different tonic, does the new key sound like an exciting gain in tension, or a relaxing move that dials the tension? In short: how does the key change make you feel?
If there is a recording of your piece freely available to stream on YouTube, Bandcamp, Spotify, Soundcloud, et al., please include a link so that we can listen.
Too Tired? Too Anxious? Need More Time? We’ve got your back.