Guitar
Quick Facts
- Instrument Key
- C (octave below)
- Transposition Interval
- Octave down
- Written C sounds as
- C3
- Instrument Family
- strings
- Instrument Page
- Guitar on Tunable
Written vs. Sounding Pitch — Frequency Table
Each row shows a written pitch (as it appears in the score) and the concert-pitch note that sounds when played. Frequencies are equal temperament at A4=440Hz.
Key Signature Conversion Table
When the conductor names a concert key, this table shows what key signature the Guitar player reads. The player reads the written key; the audience hears the sounding key.
Practical Scenarios
Classical Guitar: Playing Concert Pitch C Major
The guitarist plays written C4 (261.63 Hz written). This sounds as C3 (130.81 Hz) concert pitch. To play concert pitch C4, the guitarist plays written C5. All guitarists — classical, acoustic, and electric — live with this octave displacement without thinking about it, since all guitar music is written this way.
Guitar and Piano Ensemble: Matching Pitch
The pianist plays concert pitch G4 (392.00 Hz). The guitarist plays written G5 (783.99 Hz written, sounds G4 = 392.00 Hz). Written G5 sounds as G4 — an octave lower than written. The guitarist must mentally compensate for the octave when matching the piano.
Chord Charts and Lead Sheets
In jazz and pop lead sheets, chord symbols specify concert pitch harmonies. A C major chord on guitar sounds C3-E3-G3-C4-E4-G4 (sounding) from written open strings C4-E4-G4-C5-E5-G5. Since all guitar players share the same transposition convention, chord charts are universal without notation of the octave shift.
Why Does the Guitar Transpose?
The guitar sounds one octave below written pitch — a convention standardized in the 19th century to allow guitar music to be written in treble clef without excessive ledger lines below the staff. If written at concert pitch, the guitar's range would require bass clef or constant ledger lines. By writing an octave above sounding pitch, all guitar music sits comfortably on the treble clef staff. The guitar's lowest string (written E3, sounding E2) and highest practical note (written E6, sounding E5) span exactly the playable range in treble clef. This transposition convention applies to classical guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and bass guitar (which additionally uses bass clef).
Tune Your Guitar with Precision — Get Tunable.
Tunable's chromatic tuner shows exact Hz values in real time. Tune to equal temperament A4=440Hz or explore all 16 temperament systems.
Related Instruments
How to Transpose for C (octave below) Instruments
All Transposing Instruments · Circle of Fifths · Keys Reference · Temperament Systems