Key Signatures
The key of C major was discussed in lesson 7. Songs that use notes from the C major scale are said to be in the key of C. Similarly songs that use notes from the G major scale are said to be in the key of G major. Songs in the key of G will contain F sharp (F#) notes.
Instead of writing a sharp sign before every F note on the staff, it is easier to write just one sharp sign after each clef. This means that all the F notes on the staff are played as F#, even though there is no sharp sign written before them.
This is called a key signature. Tab notation does not use a key signature.
C Major Key Signature
The C major scale contains no sharps or flats, therefore the key signature for the key of C major contains no sharps or flats.
G Major Key Signature
The G major scale contains one sharp, F#, therefore the key signature for the key of G major contains one sharp, F#.
In any particular key, certain chords are more common than others, and after a while you will become familiar with the chords that belong to each key. Certain keys are easier for guitarists to play in and you should learn how to transpose (see How To Transpose), so you can change a song that is in a difficult key (i.e., difficult chord shapes for a beginner) into an easy key.
The easiest keys for a guitarist to play in are the keys of C major, G major, A minor and E minor. All of the songs in this book are in these keys.
- The most common chords in the key of C major are – C, Dm, Em, F, G7, Am
- The most common chords in the key of G major are – G, Am, Bm, C, D7, Em
You have learned all of these chords except for B minor which is introduced in the song Minuet later in this lesson. The next two songs are in the key of G major and use the G major key signature.
