Staying in key question !

Chords, scales, harmony, melody, etc.
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Hi,

I'm a complete newby when it comes to Notes,keys and harmony !
So here a few questions and i hope someone wil help me out without laughing :)

1) If the break/chords is in D3...Is it possible to stay in key that i choose D2 or D1 for the Drop/Lead ?

2 ) What key is the following notes and what is a possible Lead/Drop note for this ?
http://imgur.com/kLMoHz6 (http://imgur.com/kLMoHz6)

3 ) Again,what key is the following chord in ? And what are the possible lead/drop keys to stay in harmony ? Or what key should i be in if i would add some bass or extra melody ?
http://imgur.com/fHbHdoH (http://imgur.com/fHbHdoH)

4 ) Can you tell me... how you did see the keys of the previous 2 chords ?

I'm sorry if these questions are stupid but i gotta start somewhere i guess :) !!
and thx if you answer them !!

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The images are a bit painful to read, but:

The first monophonic line contains C, D, E, F, G and A. Those notes are in both the key of C major and the key of F major, or their relative minors A and D. The difference between the two would be whether you are using a Bb (F/Dm) or a B (C/Am).

If this is a bassline, I'd say C major, starting on the ii (Dm) given how E turns up a lot, rather than as a leading tone; the chords are probably Dm Em F G. That because you will *probably* not be using an E half diminished as the second chord in this progression. But context will determine the key more than just looking at a series of notes out of context.

The second image looks a lot like E minor (relative of G major), but you're not really playing chords, you're simply playing the same thing over 3 octaves. Your"chords" really only consist of a single note (albeit in different octaves, but an E is an E is an E) - this isn't harmonically particularly interesting. Instead what you're just doing is thickening up the sound by adding additional harmonics.

As to your first question, "if the break is in D3 ..." - that doesn't make any sense, as D3 is a note, not a key. If you just play D1, D2 and D3 together you'll be doing the same thing as in the second example - playing exactly the same thing over numerous octaves.

I'd suggest you look into what chords and keys actually are - google should easily give you some good hits that are suitable for beginners.

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That's funny! I wrote a post where I had C major for the first one and E minor for the second...

Then I got a panic attack and deleted everything because I thought maybe some professionals like jumpingflashjack could tear me into pieces if it isn't elaborated 100 % perfectly... :lol:

Anyway, I'm happy now to see it confirmed... :wink:

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Hey I'm sure it'll be possible to find people who'll tear me to pieces too. This is KVR after all.

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I sang the first line, which confirmed what I would guess from the particular reiteration of D at the front of it, some form of a minor mode on D.
As pointed out, it's not even seven notes [eg., the quality of the sixth, 'B' as indicator] so to say 'D minor' as in <key signature of D minor [containing the B flat]>, I wouldn't be so conclusive to do. It does rise to F in a way that indicates you may want to consider F as tonic subsequent to that, but it doesn't have to do. If that is to be taken as true, chances improve that 'key = D minor' now. (There is no requirement particularly that one needs this to be a seven-note scale, though.)
In terms of other note-choices, yes D is obviously safe in a second, 'lead' line; and as a basis, 'D natural minor' or 'D dorian' in terms of scalar material are indicated. The former containing same notes as [same key sig as] F major.

The other one is E [natural] minor. Aka as 'E Aeolian'.

You don't have any chords here.

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Newby1000 wrote:Hi,

I'm a complete newby when it comes to Notes,keys and harmony !
So here a few questions and i hope someone wil help me out without laughing :)

1) If the break/chords is in D3...Is it possible to stay in key that i choose D2 or D1 for the Drop/Lead ?
Keys don't have an octave... it's all in the key of D. Usually you can move bass or chord notes on different octaves and it still works.
Newby1000 wrote:2 ) What key is the following notes and what is a possible Lead/Drop note for this ?
http://imgur.com/kLMoHz6
D minor. The best melody notes are the ones in the chords you play. If you play a Dm chord, then D, F and A are the notes you should try first. If you play a C chord, you should check out C, E and G. It's possible to play any note you like if you put in a chord that matches - for instance, you can put G# in the melody if you play it on an E7 chord (even though G# isn't in the D minor scale).
Newby1000 wrote:3 ) Again,what key is the following chord in ? And what are the possible lead/drop keys to stay in harmony ? Or what key should i be in if i would add some bass or extra melody ?
http://imgur.com/fHbHdoH
E minor. Same as above - best melody notes are usually from the chord. If you want E, G or B, an Em or Cmaj7 chord is probably a good idea. If you want D, F# or A, you can go for a D or Bm7 chord. If you want a C, you could play a C or Am7 chord. If you want F, you can play a chord outside the E minor scale and play Fmaj7. If you want sharps (C#, D#, G#, A#), they are found in 7th chords (A7, B7, E7, F#7).
Newby1000 wrote:4 ) Can you tell me... how you did see the keys of the previous 2 chords ?

I'm sorry if these questions are stupid but i gotta start somewhere i guess :) !!
and thx if you answer them !!
First one is just a guess based on the first note (D!), then confirmed by checking that it stays in either the D major or D minor scale (minor here). It could also be in F major (which has the same notes as D minor) but then it would start on a chord other than F which is less common (the first note D isn't in the F chord F A C).

Second one is a guess based on the first bass note (E) then confirmed by checking that it stays in scale (E minor) and that the melody and chords make sense in that key.

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MadBrain wrote:
Newby1000 wrote: Same as above - best melody notes are usually from the chord.
Best? These are safe notes. 'Best for melody' must be more than this.

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jancivil wrote:
MadBrain wrote:
Newby1000 wrote: Same as above - best melody notes are usually from the chord.
Best? These are safe notes. 'Best for melody' must be more than this.
True, although elaborating on this would have made the post much, much longer. :3

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Since everything is being covered I'll give you a little tip.
Learn the scales first. When u have decided which scale you are going to use write it on the piano roll in your daw of choice and copy and paste in lower/higher octaves. This are going to be all notes you are going to be using to write your music. You can choose to start with chords first then melody or the other way around.
Have fun with it. Watch some videos and read some books if you want to advance in it.

Good luck

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