How to Transpose
If a piece of music is in the key of E flat (Eb) major and contains difficult chord shapes, you can transpose it to another major key with easier chord shapes. Keys that contain easy shapes for beginners are C major and G major, or if the song is in a minor key, A minor (Am) or E minor (Em).
All you need is the chromatic scale from earlier in this section. First write down the chromatic scale of the key the sheet music is in (usually the first chord indicates the key). Then underneath it write down the chromatic scale of the key you wish to change to. For example, to change a song from the key of Eb to the key of G, write down the chromatic scale starting with the note Eb and then underneath it write down the chromatic scale starting on the note G.
The letter names of the original chord will now be on the top line and the letter names of the new chords in the new key (in this case G) will be directly underneath.
Note that the chord type never changes. If the chord is a minor chord in the key of Eb major it will also be a minor chord in the major key it is transposed to.
For example:
An Eb chord in the key of Eb major becomes a G chord in the key of G major.
An Ab chord in the key of Eb major becomes a C chord in the key of G major.
An Cm chord in the key of Eb major becomes an Em chord in the key of G major.
An Bbm chord in the key of Eb major becomes a Dm chord in the key of G major.
The easiest keys for banjo are:
G major, C major, D major, A major, E major, A minor and E minor. These keys contain chords that have open strings in them and are generally easier shapes to hold.
