Changing keys
“Transpose” is another name for changing the key of a song. It’s a skill every guitar player should have, and it has helped me for years, because I can move a song to a key that suits my voice or my hands while I’m playing it. Here’s the easy way to do it, with a chart you can keep.
When I started transposing, I did it the hard way: counting up or down for every chord and rewriting the chart. It works, up to a point, but it’s slow, and going more than a step (E to Bb, good luck) invites mistakes. The Key Change Chord Chart below does the counting for you.
Using the Key Change Chord Chart
The chart is a simple table. Each row is a key, and the columns are the chords in that key. The Roman numerals are the scale degrees: I is the first chord of the key, ii the second, and so on. Upper case means a major chord, lower case means minor.
The tinted columns, I, IV, V and vi (one, four, five and six), are the most common chords in any key. They aren’t the only chords you’ll use, but they cover about 80% of the songs you’ll play.
| Key | I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | vii° |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | A | Bm | C#m | D | E | F#m | G#dim |
| B | B | C#m | D#m | E | F# | G#m | A#dim |
| C | C | Dm | Em | F | G | Am | Bdim |
| D | D | Em | F#m | G | A | Bm | C#dim |
| E | E | F#m | G#m | A | B | C#m | D#dim |
| F | F | Gm | Am | Bb | C | Dm | Edim |
| G | G | Am | Bm | C | D | Em | F#dim |
| Minor | i | ii° | III | iv | v | VI | VII |
| Am | Am | Bdim | C | Dm | Em | F | G |
| Bm | Bm | C#dim | D | Em | F#m | G | A |
| Cm | Cm | Ddim | Eb | Fm | Gm | Ab | Bb |
| Dm | Dm | Edim | F | Gm | Am | Bb | C |
| Em | Em | F#dim | G | Am | Bm | C | D |
| Fm | Fm | Gdim | Ab | Bbm | Cm | Db | Eb |
| Gm | Gm | Adim | Bb | Cm | Dm | Eb | F |
Members of Real Guitar Success can download a printable copy of the chart (log in first).
To change keys, find the row of the key you’re in, note which column each chord sits in, then read the same columns in the row of the key you want.
Example: “Blowin’ in the Wind” from G to D
Bob Dylan’s song is in the key of G, and the chord chart has G, C and D: the I, IV and V chords. G is a little high for my voice, so I’ll move it to D, which I know suits me better.
- Every G becomes D. The I chord of the old key becomes the I chord of the new one, so cross out each G on the chart and write D.
- C sits in the IV column of the G row. Go to the D row and read the IV column: it’s G. Replace every C with G.
- D sits in the V column of the G row. In the D row, the V column says A. Replace every D with A.
Using a Capo To Change Keys
The other way is a capo. If a song is a little low for you, a capo raises the key while you keep the same chord shapes. The chart still helps, because it tells you which key you land in. For more on that, see Guitar Capos Explained.
Try It: “Country Roads” from G to A
Let’s practice with a slightly more involved song. John Denver’s “Country Roads,” in the key of G, has these chords in the chorus:
First, use the chart to work out the scale degree of each chord in the key of G. Then transpose the whole thing up a step, to the key of A. The answers are in the box, so try it before you look.
Scale degrees: I, V, vi, IV and then I, V, IV, I.
In the key of A: A, E, F#m, D and then A, E, D, A.
How did you do?
Practice Transposing
An easy way to practice is to write out a song you’re learning, or already know, in a different key. Writing with a pen and paper helps you remember far better than typing or trusting your memory, and as you write the chords out in A, you’re memorizing the common chords of that key without trying.
Then play the song in the new key. Most guitar players learn in G major and C major and spend a lot of time there. Playing those same songs in A and D adds to your chord vocabulary, which is always a good thing.
The I, IV, V and vi chords are tinted on the chart because they are the common chords in every key. Practice just those four in a few keys and you can handle most of the songs you’ll want to learn. My lesson on Common Chord Patterns is a good way to use the chart today: it gives you the patterns (like I, V, vi, IV) and you can try them in different keys.
I wish I’d had a chart like this when I started out. It would have saved me a lot of grief. If you’d like to go further, the next lesson in this series is Day 22: Building Chords on Guitar, and members can find the full Changing Keys lesson inside Real Guitar Success.
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Thank you. I will practice transposing the songs using your chart so I do not need to rely on a capo. Thank you.