Every song has a key. It tells you which note the song revolves around – usually the first and last chord. A song with C, F and G7 is in C major. Sometimes a key is too high or too low to sing, or one chord is hard to play. Then you can transpose the song: you shift every chord by the same distance.
The note ladder
Write out the twelve notes in a row or a circle:
C – C# – D – Eb – E – F – F# – G – Ab – A – Bb – B – and back to C.
Each step is a half step. To move a song two half steps higher, move every chord two places to the right. The ending stays the same: Am becomes Bm, G7 becomes A7.
An example
A song in C major with C, F, G7 should sound five half steps lower. Five steps to the left gives G, C, D7. On guitar and banjo G major is especially comfortable; on ukulele C or F major often feels easier. That’s why musicians transpose all the time.
CGTransposing in the app
- You can change the key of any song. All chords and chord diagrams update instantly.
- A ★ marks a suggested key with the easiest chords.
- A ◆ shows the song’s original or source key.
Guitar and banjo players have one more trick: the capo. It shortens all strings at once. You keep playing your familiar chord shapes, but the song sounds higher. That way you can change key without learning new chords. The note names are explained in Note names.
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