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G major

G major has 1 sharp (F♯). Its scale is G A B C D E F♯, its chords are G, Am, Bm, C, D, Em and F♯dim, and its relative minor is E minor.

Make a beat in G majorWrite a melody in this key

Opens the free editor with a pop beat on G D Em C. No account needed to start.

The G major scale

Whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half: the half steps come between B and C, and between F♯ and G.

G A B C D E F♯ G

GABCDEGF♯

On the piano, G major uses 1 black key (F♯) and 6 white keys (G, A, B, C, D and E).

The notes of G major by scale degree
DegreeNoteName
1GTonic
2ASupertonic
3BMediant
4CSubdominant
5DDominant
6ESubmediant
7F♯Leading tone

Chords in G major

One chord on each note of the scale, built from the scale’s own notes. The Roman numeral says which note it starts on: capitals are major, small letters minor.

IG
iiAm
iiiBm
IVC
VD
viEm
vii°F♯dim

Which chords sound happy or sad

Bright

G C D

I, IV, V. The major chords. G feels like home; D pulls back to it.

Softer, sadder

Am Bm Em

ii, iii, vi. The minor chords. Em is the sad turn in many pop songs.

Tense

F♯dim

vii°. Diminished: tense and unstable, it wants to move on, usually to G.

A progression in G major

The pop progression · I–V–vi–IV
G
D
Em
C
Hear it as

More progressions in G major

Key signature and related keys

Key signature

1 sharp: F♯

Written at the start of every line of music, so each F is played sharp. Sharps join in the order F C G D A E B, and flats in the order B E A D G C F.

Relative minor

E minor

The same seven notes and key signature, starting on E.

Parallel minor

G minor

The same home note, with 2 flats. Borrowing a chord from it makes a part sound darker.

Next to it on the circle of fifths

  • A fifth down: C major (no sharps or flats)
  • A fifth up: D major (2 sharps)

Keys next to each other share six of their seven notes. See them all on the circle of fifths.

G major in beats

The editor’s starter beats for these styles are written in G major. Each opens the free editor with its own drums, bass and chords at its usual tempo, no account needed.

Afrobeats · 106 BPMPop · 110 BPMCountry · 110 BPMDisco · 120 BPMHardstyle · 150 BPMReggae · 75 BPMSoca · 158 BPMSouthern soul · 108 BPM

And 1 more of the editor’s styles start in G major.

Questions about G major

How many sharps are in G major?

One: F♯. Every F is played sharp, so the key signature has 1 sharp, and E minor, its relative minor, has the same.

What is the relative minor of G major?

E minor. It uses the same seven notes and the same key signature as G major, but starts on E, the sixth note of the scale. The two share every chord, which is why songs move between them so easily.

What chords are in G major?

G, Am, Bm, C, D, Em and F♯dim: one built on each note of the scale (I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii°). G, C and D are the three major chords most songs in G major lean on, and Em (vi) gives a sadder turn.

What is the most common chord progression in G major?

I–V–vi–IV: G, D, Em and C. It is behind hundreds of hit songs, and it is the one the beat on this page plays.

Every key

Major keys
C majorG majorD majorA majorE majorB majorF♯ majorD♭ majorA♭ majorE♭ majorB♭ majorF major
Minor keys
A minorE minorB minorF♯ minorC♯ minorG♯ minorD♯ minorB♭ minorF minorC minorG minorD minor

Build a song in G major

Start with the beat, then add chords, a melody and your voice in the editor, part by part.

Make a beat in G majorAll music keys

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