Reply #27: No, It Doesn't Matter

[ProfessorGAC]

One of the most common reasons for changing the key of the song, vs. what is charted, is for voice. If you're singing, or have a vocalist, it's common to find the key that is the most comfortable for the singer to work the song as well.

Obviously, there are keys that some of us find easier to vamp. I like playing in B, in F (II-V-I), and D. My scalar and modal ideas seem to flow better in those keys, but i can do it any key. I think sometimes that i "hear" those keys in my head better, and it has little to do with fingering. I could be wrong about that, though.

I'm assuming the melody works best when thought of as a "G". It looks like it could Em to me as well based upon the changes, except for the use of F#m7b5, which is essentially the same as a D9, with a different bass tone. A D9 would be a nice counter off the Em into the B, but that's also a II-V-I change (F# to B back to E), in the key of E. So, go figure!

But, this song is in G or Em, take your pick. The knowledge of the key also leads one to substitutions. Rather than play just those chords on the lead sheet, (as you transcribed), knowing the key allows substitutions that are more likely to stay in sync with the melody line. If you get too far from , you end up playing as weirdly as i do!

Last answer: Yes knowing the key and melody should be able to allow one to improvise without reading the chord sheets. However, in actual practice, there are only a few great players that can do that instantaneously. More likely, folks (like me) would have to play through it as written once or twice, then without bothering to look at the chord charts anymore, sub and vamp around the written changes in line with where the melody goes.

Listen to Oscar Peterson some time. He almost always played the first pass (verse) straight. Second time, the changes are in the same place, but their extended. Then, he starts subbing the chords. By then, i seriously doubt Oscar was reading the sheet music. The song probably imbedded itself into his head by then, and he was playing on feel.
The Professor