Random Key Generator
Current key
C Ionian (major)
Notes in the key
- C
- D
- E
- F
- G
- A
- B
Same notes as C major (8B) and A minor (8A)
Chord path
- IC
- VG
- viAm
- IVF
Choose, or lock to keep on the next roll
Recent keys
Roll a key and it will be listed here.
A random key generator that prints the notes it rolls
A key is a root, a mode and the seven notes between them. The generator draws all three, shows the notes as they land, and offers a short chord path that stays inside the mode you were given.
Twelve roots and nine modes
Every roll starts from one of the twelve roots and one of nine modes: the seven diatonic modes from Ionian to Locrian, plus the harmonic and melodic minors.
A chord path that belongs to the key
Each mode carries three progressions in Roman numerals with every chord named in the key, so vi reads Am in C Ionian and the chords shown belong to the key you were given.
Lock whatever you want to keep
A lock holds the root, the mode or the chord path in place, so the next roll only moves the parts you left free.
How it works
Roll a key in three moves
Roll a key, or pick one
Press next key and the generator draws a root, a mode and one of that mode's chord paths, or set any of the three yourself from its menu.
Read and hear the notes
The seven notes are listed under the key, one letter each, and the scale and the chord path can be played back before you take them to an instrument or a piano roll.
Lock or copy
Lock the root you like, or copy the key, its notes and its chord path as text you can paste anywhere.
Keys, modes and chords, without an account
The twelve roots a roll can land on, each key spelled with every letter once, so Ab Ionian reads Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb, F and G.
Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian and Locrian, plus harmonic and melodic minor, each with its own pattern of semitones.
Every mode carries three chord paths in Roman numerals, and one of them is drawn on each roll.
No generation job is submitted, so a roll costs nothing and needs no account.
Who rolls a key with this generator
Songwriters stuck on a root
Roll until a root and a mode sound like the mood you are after, then write against the notes it prints.
Producers starting a beat
Keep a root you already like, roll the mode, and take a chord path as the first idea in a new project.
Teachers setting an exercise
Draw a key for a student to write in, or lock the mode and vary the root through a whole lesson.
Random Key Generator FAQ
Take the key into a session
Use the key you rolled as the starting point for a track, or check the key of something you already recorded.