My prefix lets us open doors, My suffix is crucial for doors

Question

• My prefix lets us open doors.

• My suffix is crucial for doors.

• My infix is where we get pork.

• My whole is why pianos work.

Answer 1

Answer:

keyboard

My prefix lets us open doors.

That sounds an awful lot like a "key" lol

My suffix is crucial for doors.

It's kinda essential to have a "board"... otherwise your door is just a hinge

My infix is where we get pork.

Large pigs are often called a boar

My whole is why pianos work.

The keyboard is what the player presses in order to push a hammer that strikes a tuned wire, which makes the sound.

Answer 2

Since I think Ankit already has it, I went down a rabbit hole to create an "out-of-the-box" answer as a thought exercise. Lot's of metaphors and it's all a stretch... Maybe someone can help me improve?

Sounder

My prefix lets us open doors.

So - looking at metaphorical doors, a definition of "so" is "and then; as the next step", taking the next step allows up to open new doors (opportunities).

My suffix is crucial for doors.

under - literal doors, if there's nothing under them, they serve no purpose.

My infix is where we get pork.

a sounder is a collective noun for a group of pigs, we get our pork from the one in the middle ;)

My whole is why pianos work.

a sounder is an alternative name for the hammer that actually strikes the piano string and creates sound.

Obviously not as good as the other answer (why I voted for it), leaving here for anyone curious/maybe inspire another?