Transposing
The term "transposing" is used to describe the process whereby a melody is changed from one key to another. This is done for two main— reasons:
- Singing - to sing the whole song at a lower or higher pitch (depending on the singer’s voice range).
- Ease of Playing - because of the musical structure of the guitar, some keys are regarded as easier to play in than others, (the "easiest" keys are those involving least number of sharps or flats; C, F, and G).
The following step-by-step examples will teach you how to transpose from one key to another.
Example One: Transposing "Song of Joy" from C to G
Here is the melody of "Song of Joy", written in the key of C:
Song of Joy (C Major)
If you wanted to transpose this song into the key of G, the following method may be used:
- Write out the C chromatic scale (review Lesson 8, Book One ).
- Write out the G chromatic scale, with each note directly beneath its counterpart in the C chromatic scale, as such:
- Every note of "Song of Joy" must now be located on the C chromatic scale and be replaced with the corresponding note on the G chromatic scale. Thus the first note E becomes B, the second note F becomes C, the third note G becomes D and so on:
The complete transposition will be:
Song of Joy (G Major)
You will notice by playing through this "new" melody that it is still "Song of Joy", but each note is sounding at a lower pitch. In this way, if you had been unable to sing some of the higher notes found in the key of C version, you would find it much easier to do so in the G version.
Note also that the key of G version features F# in the key signature, and that the time values of the notes (e.g., quarter notes, half notes) remain the same.
Example Two: "Song of Joy" from C to F
Transposing "Song of Joy" into the key of F involves the same procedure as outlined in example one, except the F chromatic scale is used instead of G:
Once again each note of the melody is located on the C chromatic scale and replaced with the corresponding note on the F chromatic scale. The complete transposition will be:
Song of Joy (F Major)
Once again, note that the key of F version features Bb in the key signature.
Example Three: Transposing "Scarborough Fair" from A Minor to E minor
Transposing in minor keys involves the exact same procedure as outlined for major keys. In the following example, "Scarborough Fair" has been transposed from A minor to E minor, using the A and E chromatic scales for the conversion.
Scarborough Fair (A Minor)
Scarborough Fair (E Minor)
Note in bar 7 that the F# note, when transposed to E minor becomes C#.
Example Four: Transposing Chords
When transposing chords, the same procedure is used as for melodies. Each chord type (e.g., major, minor, 7th etc) remains the same, but the chord name will change in accordance with the chromatic scale conversion. Here is an example progression transposed from F to C.
