Major Key Chords

Let’s find the piano chords in the key of C sharp major. We can use these chords to create chord progressions and play creatively in the key of C sharp.

How to Find Chords for C Sharp

The first thing we’ll need to do is build a C sharp major scale (learn how to build a major scale here).

Here’s a C sharp major scale:

C♯ – D♯ – E♯ – F♯ – G♯ – A♯ – B♯ – C♯

That’s a lot of sharps! C sharp major has seven sharps, which is as many as a scale can have.

Chords for Major Keys Printable

This 21-page PDF will help you learn the chords for every major key! Use these chords to build chord progressions and play creatively.

Get the Printable

So to find the chords for this key, we’ll build a “1 – 3 – 5” chord off each note of the scale, using only the notes of the scale to build the chords.

Starting on C♯, we’ll count “1 – 3 – 5” using the notes of the scale. When we do, we get: C♯ – E♯ – G♯

Then we’ll start on D♯ and build another “1 – 3 – 5” chord using only the notes of the scale: D♯ – F♯ – A♯

Then we’ll start on E♯ and build another “1 – 3 – 5” chord using only the notes of the scale: E♯ – G♯ – B♯

We can continue this pattern, using only the notes of the scale to build a “1 – 3 – 5” chord off each note of the scale.

Piano Chords in the Key of C Sharp Major

Here are the chords for the key of C sharp:

C♯ – E♯ – G♯ = C♯ major chord

D♯ – F♯ – A♯ = D♯ minor chord

E♯ – G♯ – B♯ = E♯ minor chord

F♯ – A♯ – C♯ = F♯ major chord

G♯ – B♯ – D♯ = G♯ major chord

A♯ – C♯ – E♯ = A♯ minor chord

B♯ – D♯ – F♯ = B♯ diminished chord

Other Major Key Chords

You can find chords for the other major keys below:

C Major Chords
G Major Chords
D Major Chords
A Major Chords
E Major Chords
B Major Chords
F Sharp Major Chords
F Major Chords
B Flat Major Chords
E Flat Major Chords
A Flat Major Chords
D Flat Major Chords
G Flat Major Chords
C Flat Major Chords

Enharmonic Keys

Some keys are considered “enharmonic”. This means they use the same notes on the piano, but go by two different names.

The key of C sharp major is enharmonic with D flat major, because these two keys use the same notes on the piano, but are labeled differently.

There are six total enharmonic keys:

B major and C flat major
F sharp major and G flat major
C sharp major and D flat major

To understand these relationships better, take a look at the circle of fifths.

How to Label the Chords

There are four kinds of “1 – 3 – 5” chords, or “triads”:

Major
Minor
Augmented
Diminished

The difference between these chord types depends on the intervals used to build the chords (learn all about piano intervals here).

But to summarize:

Major chords are built using the first, third and fifth notes of the matching major scale.

Minor chords are major chords with the middle note lowered 1/2 step.

Augmented chords are major chords with the upper-note raised 1/2 step.

Diminished chords are minor chords with the upper-note lowered 1/2 step.

When we build a chord off each note of a major scale, using only the notes of the scale to build the chords, we will always get these chords in this order:

Major
Minor
Minor
Major
Major
Minor
Diminished

So you can use this pattern to find the chords for any major key!

Primary Chords for the Key of C Sharp

Each major key has three “primary” chords. We can find the primary chords for a major key by building a chord off the first, fourth and fifth notes of the matching major scale.

The primary chords for the key of C sharp are:

C♯ major
F♯ major
G♯ major

We’ll use these chords often when playing in the key of C sharp.

Conclusion

Now you know how to find the piano chords in the key of C sharp major, and you can use this pattern to find the chords for any major key.

It’s so much fun to take the chords belonging to a particular key and use them to create chord progressions and play creatively at the piano!