What chords are in C major?

Triads: C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, B°. Seventh chords: Cmaj7, Dm7, Em7, Fmaj7, G7, Am7, Bm7♭5.

Where do you play C major on guitar?

In standard tuning there are 7 positions with 3 notes per string; the first one starts on the root, between frets 8 and 13.

What chords can you improvise over with C major?

The turnaround (Imaj7–vi7–ii7–V7): Cmaj7 | Am7 | Dm7 | G7. The jazz and pop turnaround, one chord per bar. The V7 pulls back to the I: resolve to E. Also: ii–V–I (Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 | Cmaj7); Pop (C | G | Am | F).

C major scale on guitar: notes, chords and positions

Tuning

Tap a key to hear it · hold it to make it the root

View on So WhatScale ↗

Chords of the scale tap one to hear it and see it on the instrument

Formula W whole step · H half step

Degrees and intervals

C major scale on guitar

C major has 7 notes: C D E F G A B. Degrees: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7. Formula: W W H W W W H.

What notes are in the C major scale?

C, D, E, F, G, A and B. It has 7 notes; its formula in whole and half steps is W W H W W W H.

What does C major sound like, and when do you use it?

Bright, stable and resolved: the starting point of Western harmony. Use it over maj7 · the I of a major key (careful with the 4th over the chord: it's the avoid note).

To hear it: Let It Be — The Beatles.

Chords in C major

Degree	Triad	Seventh chord
I	C	Cmaj7
ii	Dm	Dm7
iii	Em	Em7
IV	F	Fmaj7
V	G	G7
vi	Am	Am7
vii°	B°	Bm7♭5

Chord progressions to improvise with C major

In Jam mode (the Jam button above) a band of grand piano, upright bass and drums (recorded instruments) plays these progressions as swing, bossa, groove or ballad, and the fretboard lights up the notes of each chord as it plays. It's a backing track made for this scale in C:

The turnaround (Imaj7–vi7–ii7–V7): Cmaj7 | Am7 | Dm7 | G7. The jazz and pop turnaround, one chord per bar. The V7 pulls back to the I: resolve to E.
ii–V–I (ii7–V7–Imaj7): Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 | Cmaj7. The jazz cadence: tension on the V7, arrival on the I. End your phrases on E or B.
Pop (I–V–vi–IV): C | G | Am | F. The progression of a thousand songs. Simple melodies resting on the highlighted notes.

C major positions on guitar

In standard tuning (E A D G B E), with 3 notes per string, C major is played in 7 positions along the neck:

Position 1: frets 8 to 13 (starts on the root)
Position 2: frets 10 to 15
Position 3: frets 0 to 5
Position 4: frets 1 to 7
Position 5: frets 3 to 8
Position 6: frets 5 to 10
Position 7: frets 7 to 12

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Jam