Angliholic  +  604623 Thu, 04 Dec 08 12:51 PM The bird was not to blame for his key And of course there must be something wrong In wanting to silence any song. Hi, The above is from Frost's poem "A Minor Bird." Is it right to interpret "key" as "song?" Thanks. Angliholic Joined on Wed, Feb 14 2007 SomewhereinFormosa Veteran Member 6,474 Without true love, life is meaningless and worthless since our physical world is nothing but a dream. ~~Angliholic~~簡瑞達

	Delmobile  +  604644 Thu, 04 Dec 08 01:04 PM  Musically, "key" refers to the notes used to write the song---the key of C major, a minor, etc. - rather than the song itself. I'm not familiar with this poem but the minor keys are frequently used for melancholy-sounding music.  Delmobile Joined on Wed, Jan 2 2008 Contributing Member 1,082

	Angliholic  +  604658 Thu, 04 Dec 08 01:12 PM Thanks, Dlemobile. It occurred to me that maybe "ke" in question is more closer to "tune," isn't it? Angliholic

	Angliholic  +  604659 Thu, 04 Dec 08 01:12 PM Thanks, Dlemobile. It occurred to me that maybe "ke" in question is more closer to "tune," isn't it? Angliholic

	Delmobile  +  604748 Thu, 04 Dec 08 03:53 PM  Not exactly. Here's the definition of key from the Simple English Wikipedia: Most music is in a particular key. This means that one of the 12 notes (C, Dflat, D, etc) sounds like the “home note”. When the piece finishes it normally comes to rest on this home note (also called: the “tonic”). The piece will be built on the notes of the scale that starts on that note. There are two kinds of key (like there are two kinds of scale): major and minor. Sometimes the key of a piece is in its title: “Minuet in C”, Sonata in F sharp major. If the title does not say “major” or “minor” it is normally taken to be major. The closest I can get to a non-musical metaphor is to say that a key is to a tune like a fabric is to a dress. You could make a dress in a cotton print, a heavy velvet, or a sturdy wool tweed, and they would all have different uses and be worn for different occasions. A sprightly tune in F major creates a very different mood than a dirge written in e-flat minor. Delmobile Metaphors