Minor key
B minor
Its seven chords: Bm, C♯dim, D, Em, F♯m, G, A.
- B1
- C♯2
- D3
- E4
- F♯5
- G6
- A7
| Degree | Triad | Seventh chord | Notes of the seventh chord |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 B | i Bm | i7 Bm7 | B D F♯ A |
| 2 C♯ | ii° C♯dim | iiø7 C♯m7♭5 | C♯ E G B |
| 3 D | III D | IIImaj7 Dmaj7 | D F♯ A C♯ |
| 4 E | iv Em | iv7 Em7 | E G B D |
| 5 F♯ | v F♯m | v7 F♯m7 | F♯ A C♯ E |
| 6 G | VI G | VImaj7 Gmaj7 | G B D F♯ |
| 7 A | VII A | VII7 A7 | A C♯ E G |
| Harmonic minor | V F♯ | F♯ A♯ C♯ | |
| Harmonic minor | V7 F♯7 | F♯ A♯ C♯ E | |
| Harmonic minor | vii°7 A♯dim7 | A♯ C♯ E G | |
- i–iv–V–i
- Bm
- Em
- F♯
- Bm
- i–VI–III–VII
- Bm
- G
- D
- A
- i–VII–VI–V
- Bm
- A
- G
- F♯
- ii°–V7–i
- C♯dim
- F♯7
- Bm
About B minor
Play B – C♯ – D – E – F♯ – G – A and back to the first note again, and you have the scale of B minor. With 2♯ in the signature (F♯, C♯), it is easy to read once you know the signature. Every chord in the table above is made only from these notes.
Three chords hold B minor together: the tonic Bm, the subdominant Em and the dominant F♯. The last one is borrowed from the harmonic minor scale: raising the seventh note to A♯ creates a leading tone that resolves up by a half step to the home note.
Starting the same scale from D gives D major, the relative key. Borrowing a chord from B major, the parallel key, is a classic way to add colour: a minor chord in a major key, or a major chord in a minor one, for a moment.
The neighbouring minor keys are F sharp minor and E minor; each is one note away from B minor. The ii chord of the key, C♯dim, is diminished, and in jazz it is often played as a half-diminished chord leading to F♯.
B minor lies well on the guitar, with 4 chords available as open shapes. That is one reason so many guitar-based songs are written in this key.
Practise the key in three steps: the scale up and down, the seven chords in order, then one of the progressions above until the changes feel automatic. Ten minutes is enough.