What is a key in music?

A key tells you the tonal center of a song. It identifies which note everything revolves around and which chords naturally fit with it. When a chord chart says "Key of G" it means the song is centered on the G note and for the most part use the notes of the G major scale.

In the key of G, the note G is home base. The chords that naturally belong to that key are G, Am, Bm, C, D, and Em. Most worship songs in G will use some combination of those chords, which is why once you know a few songs in G, the next song in G feels familiar.

Every key follows the same pattern, just starting from a different note. The key of C has its own family. The key of D has its own. The relationships between the chords inside each key stay the same.

  • Music alphabet - where key names come from
  • Root note - the note a key is named after is the root of that key
  • Capo - one way to play in a different key using familiar chord shapes
  • Nashville Number System - a way of describing chords by their position in a key rather than their letter name
What is an intro of a worship song?What is a lead sheet?