Triads
C major chord
Bright, stable and resolved — the foundation of most songs.
C is the I chord in C major, IV in G major and V in F major. In minor keys: III in A minor, V in F minor, VI in E minor and VII in D minor.
- Notes
- CEG
- Formula
- 135
- Built from
- root · major 3rd · perfect 5th
How to play C
About the C major chord
C major is the reference point for Western harmony: its scale is simply the white keys of the piano, so C is usually the first chord piano students learn and the home chord of any song in C. Its sound is plain and bright — a natural place for a song to start and to come home to.
Playing it
On guitar, C has an open-position shape, x32010, using three fingers alongside the open strings. Don’t strum the low E string.
On piano, C sits entirely on white keys.
On ukulele it takes a single finger (0003), which makes C one of the simplest chords on the instrument.
Related chords
C shares two of its three notes with Am (C and E), its relative minor, and with Em (E and G). That overlap is why these chords sound so natural next to each other — and why they can often stand in for one another.
Move a single note and C becomes a different chord: lower E to E♭ for Cm, add B♭ for C7, add B for Cmaj7 and raise E to F for Csus4.
