C major scale on guitar

The notes of the C major scale

C D E F G A B

Formula: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7. Steps from note to note: 2 2 1 2 2 2 1 semitones (whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half).

C major has no sharps or flats. Its relative minor, with the same notes, is A minor.

In Hz, from C3: C3 130.8 · D3 146.8 · E3 164.8 · F3 174.6 · G3 196.0 · A3 220.0 · B3 246.9.

The C major scale on guitar

One position, frets 7–11, low E string first: low E: 7 8 10 (B C D) · A: 7 8 10 (E F G) · D: 7 9 10 (A B C) · G: 7 9 10 (D E F) · B: 8 10 (G A) · high E: 7 8 10 (B C D). 0 = open string.

The root C sits at fret 8 on the low E string and at fret 3 on the A string. Slide the same shape there for any other root.

Open position first

The friendliest C major is in open position: A string 3 (C), D string 0 2 3 (D E F), G string 0 2 (G A), B string 0 1 (B C). No sharps, no flats, and the open strings do half the work. The position on this page starts from the 8th fret instead, the movable shape that becomes D major two frets up. Play both, and say the note names as you go: C major is where most people learn the fretboard.

More scales

Major scale on guitar C major scale on piano C major scale on bass C major scale on ukulele C major scale on trumpet A major scale on guitar C major: scale and chords

How this page works

Hear it plays the scale up and down at 100 BPM on one of four Brumm sounds. Take it gives the same notes as a MIDI file and a WAV. − and + move the root. Every note here is computed from the formula.

Sources

Scales and modes: Open Music Theory, musictheory.net. Piano fingerings: the standard scale-book fingerings (ABRSM scale books; Hanon, The Virtuoso Pianist, part 3). Trumpet valves: the standard B♭ trumpet fingering chart (Yamaha, Bach). Hz: A4 = 440 Hz, ISO 16.

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