Ukulele Tabs and Chords. Doctor Uke's Waiting Room. Chord Finder. AFFECTIVE KEY CHARACTERISTICS. Affective Musical Key Characteristics The association of musical keys with specific emotional or qualitative characteristic was fairly common prior to the 20th century.
It was part of the shared cultural experience of those who made, performed and listened to music. When Mozart or Beethoven or Schubert wrote a piece in a Ab major, for example, they were well aware of this was the 'key of the grave' and knew that many in their audiences were as well. We lose a part of the meaning of their music if we are ignorant of their affective choices.