Are modulations overrated?

Modulations (key changes) are very common in church music and especially in piano arrangements.  But are they necessary?

I have been thinking about this for a few weeks.  Why does every arrangement over 3 minutes have at least one modulation?  Amazingly, I could not come up with a good reason.

Don’t get me wrong; I like modulations.  They add interest and are often a great transition between styles or dynamic changes.  But you don’t have to use a modulation to do those things.

There is a particular professional pianist that I really enjoy.  He often plays 7-9 minute arrangements and I have noticed that he rarely does modulations.  So, a week or so ago, I asked him about this issue.  He immediately started laughing and asked me why I thought modulations were so prevalent.

I gave him my reasons (the same ones I mentioned above).  He told me he thought modulations are often a crutch when people cannot do more interesting things.  He thinks they are basically a cliche.

I asked him to estimate what percentage of songs he does a modulation in and he said about 10%.

So, because I think I have been falling into the modulation cliche, I am determined to use fewer of them.  In fact, I think I am going to make them the exception rather than the rule.

What do you think?