Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument with a flat body, a broad neck and usually six strings. Its music is written in the treble clef and sounds an octave lower than notated. Some editions show this with a small 8 under the clef, others leave it out.
- Meaning
- plucked string instrument, usually six strings
- Sound
- an octave lower than notated
- Open strings
- E – A – D – G – B – E (standard tuning; E2 to E4)
- Word origin
- Spanish guitarra, via Arabic from Greek kithára
Written and sounding
Guitar music is written in the treble clef but sounds an octave lower than it looks. The guitar thus belongs to the transposing instruments that are notated an octave away from where they sound; in lists of such instruments it appears alongside the double bass and the contrabassoon. Every line of guitar music therefore sounds an octave lower than it is written.
The six open strings in standard tuning (sounding)
From the lowest to the highest string: E2, A2, D3, G3, B3, E4. Between the first four strings there is a fourth each time, between G and B a major third, between B and E again a fourth. The 8 under the clef is shown here because the notes sit on the lines as they are written in guitar music, that is, an octave higher than they sound.
The open C major chord (sounding)
Five notes in one chord: C3, E3, G3, C4, E4. The chord diagram below shows where they lie on the fretboard.
The first line is notated the way it is done with the small 8: the 8 is a reminder that the notes sound an octave lower than the treble clef would read them. On the lines the notes sit in the same place as in a guitar part without an 8. The chord diagram makes the chord tangible:
With an 8 or without
The 8 is possible but not obligatory. Depending on the account, the treble clef that transposes down an octave is called “less common” or is used only “sometimes” for the guitar. Both occur in the sheet music archive:
| Piece in the archive | Clef | Other markings on the sheet |
|---|---|---|
| Etüde Nr. 1 (Giuliani) | treble clef with a small 8 | position “I”, chord symbols, two voices on one staff |
| An Alexis (Horetzky) | treble clef without an 8 | “Satz für Gitarre” (setting for guitar), two voices on one staff |
| Adelita (Tárrega) | treble clef without an 8 | Guitar I and II; Roman numerals, circled numbers, fingering numbers |
Giuliani has the 8, Horetzky and Tárrega do not. According to the sources, guitar music sounds an octave lower than notated in every case; the 8 merely points this out.
Guitar pieces
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Etüde Nr. 1 Mauro Giuliani (1781–1829), from: 24 Études, op. 100 · solo guitar · 1 page
At the start of every system a small 8 sits under the treble clef. Time signature C, no sharps or flats, and above the first bar the position marking “I” and chord symbols (B°, C, G, Am, Dm). For most of the piece two voices share one staff: the bass with stems down, sixteenth notes with stems up.
-
An Alexis Felix Horetzky (1796–1870), No. 48, from: 60 National Airs of Different Nations · arrangement for guitar · 1 page
The treble clef has no 8. Two ♯, three-four time, “ANDANTINO”, chord symbols, with the melody stems-up and the accompaniment stems-down on one staff.
-
Adelita Francisco Tárrega (1852–1909), mazurka for two guitars, arr.: J. J. Olson · 1 page
Two staves joined by a brace, “Guitar I” and “Guitar II”, treble clef without an 8, one ♯ at the start, three-four time, “Lento”. Above and below the notes are Roman numerals, circled numbers and fingering numbers; later the key signature changes to four ♯.
What else appears in guitar music
Besides the notes, guitar editions contain markings that are missing for other instruments. Usually Roman numerals give the position on the fretboard, circled numbers the string, and numbers at the notes are fingerings. You will find all three in “Adelita”. Many songs in the archive also carry the note “mit Akkorden für Gitarre” (with chords for guitar): chord symbols are then printed above the staff, while the notes themselves are written for voice, choir or piano.
Common mistakes
- Taking the 8 for an additional octave leap: It only reminds you of the octave displacement that applies to guitar music anyway.
- Mixing up sounding and written pitch: The low E sounds as E2 but is written an octave higher.
- Taking the numbers above the staff for fingerings: Roman numerals are positions, circled numbers are strings.
Continue on Maikstrings
Related terms
Treble clefOpen stringFingerboardTablatureString instrumentPianoDouble bassOctaveTranspositionChord
Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 3 October 2026
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