C in C major
In C major, C is C (natural)
In C major, C is C (natural)The key signature of C major does not alter C, so it stays natural.
Is C sharp or flat in C major?
In C major, C is natural: the key has no sharps or flats at all, so you play the plain C unless a written accidental says otherwise.
C major is the one major key written with no sharps and no flats, so every letter — C included — is played natural.
Spelled from the tonic, the C major scale runs C, D, E, F, G, A, B — one of each letter, each carrying whatever the signature gives it. The staff above draws the C major signature and the note C inside it — exactly as you would meet it in a piece written in this key.
Every letter in C major
C major has no sharps or flats. That fixes what each of the seven letters is called in this key:
- C is C (natural — the signature leaves it alone) — the letter on this page
- D is D (natural — the signature leaves it alone)
- E is E (natural — the signature leaves it alone)
- F is F (natural — the signature leaves it alone)
- G is G (natural — the signature leaves it alone)
- A is A (natural — the signature leaves it alone)
- B is B (natural — the signature leaves it alone)
Related keys
C major shares its signature with its relative A minor — the same sharps or flats, so C is natural there too.
Frequently asked questions
- Is C sharp or flat in C major?
- No. C major has no sharps or flats at all, so C is natural in this key.
- What accidental does C carry in C major?
- C stays natural. C major is the one major key written with no sharps and no flats, so every letter — C included — is played natural.
- What sharps or flats are in C major?
- C major has no sharps or flats at all.
- How is the C major scale spelled?
- From the tonic up: C, D, E, F, G, A, B. Each letter appears once, carrying whatever the key signature gives it.