Mandolin · key of B minor

Chords in the key of B minor

The seven chords in the key of B minor are Bm, C♯dim, D, Em, F♯m, G and A. D, G and A are the major chords (III, VI and VII), Bm, Em and F♯m are the minor chords (i, iv and v), and C♯dim is diminished (ii°). Its relative major is D major, which uses the same seven chords.

Key

Scale

The chords of B minor
Numeral	Triad	Notes	Seventh chord	Notes	Number	Role
i	Bmhome	B D F♯	Bm7home	B D F♯ A	1m	tonic
ii°	C♯dimthe edge	C♯ E G	C♯m7♭5the edge	C♯ E G B	2°	supertonic
III	Ddaylight	D F♯ A	Dmaj7daylight	D F♯ A C♯	3	mediant
iv	Emsoft fall	E G B	Em7soft fall	E G B D	4m	subdominant
v	F♯msoft fall	F♯ A C♯	F♯m7soft fall	F♯ A C♯ E	5m	dominant
VI	Gcinematic	G B D	Gmaj7cinematic	G B D F♯	6	submediant
VII	Aheroic	A C♯ E	A7heroic	A C♯ E G	7	subtonic
V	F♯the pull	F♯ A♯ C♯	F♯7the pull	F♯ A♯ C♯ E	5	often used in place of F♯m

Sound

Strum or arpeggiate any chord, tap a note to hear it, drag the strip under a picture to play it further up the neck, or pick another inversion. Library opens the chord there, with every other way to play it.

Bm

LibraryMandolin · Standard

i · tonic

C♯dim

LibraryMandolin · Standard

ii° · supertonic

D

LibraryMandolin · Standard

III · mediant

Em

LibraryMandolin · Standard

iv · subdominant

F♯m

LibraryMandolin · Standard

v · dominant

G

LibraryMandolin · Standard

VI · submediant

A

LibraryMandolin · Standard

VII · subtonic

Chord progressions in B minor

Press a chord to hear it and see its shape, or Play to hear the progression on mandolin. The colours say what each chord does in the key.

Sound Pattern Tempo85

↓ · ↓ ↑ · ↑ ↓ ↑ · Down, down-up, up-down-up: the campfire strum, also called the calypso strum.

Colours

home, minorthe pullthe edgeheroiccinematicsoft falldaylight

What each chord does in its key. Press a chord to hear it and read more.

The minor key’s three chords

i | iv | v | i

Key Chord chart

i–iv–v–i, the minor key’s own three chords.

The epic minor progression

i | VI | III | VII

Key Chord chart

i–VI–III–VII, the sound of film scores and rock anthems.

The Andalusian cadence

i | VII | VI | V

Key Chord chart

Stepping down to a major fifth chord, heard in flamenco and in many rock songs.

To the relative major

i | iv | VII | III

Key Chord chart

i–iv–VII–III, a minor progression that lands on the relative major.

Climbing back home

i | VI | VII | i

Key Chord chart

i–VI–VII–i, common in rock and metal.

The minor ii–V–i

iiø7 | V7 | i7 | i7

Key Chord chart

The minor turnaround of jazz, in seventh chords.

The major fifth chord

In a minor key the fifth chord is often played major, F♯ or F♯7 in place of F♯m. Its third is the leading note of the harmonic minor scale, a half step below B, and it pulls back to Bm more strongly.

The relative major: D major

D major has the same notes and the same seven chords as B minor, starting from D. A song in one often moves to the other. The parallel major, B major, starts on the same note with a different set of chords.

Play it with a capo

B minor takes barre chords on mandolin. A capo lets you play it with the open shapes of an easier key:

Capo 2, the shapes of A minor: Am, Bdim, C, Dm, Em, F and G
Capo 7, the shapes of E minor: Em, F♯dim, G, Am, Bm, C and D

The B minor scale and key signature

The notes of B minor are B, C♯, D, E, F♯, G, A. Its key signature has two sharps: C♯ and F♯. Each chord of the key is built from these notes, a third apart: a chord on every note of the scale. See the B minor scale on the mandolin neck, and the B minor pentatonic.

Keys nearby

On the circle of fifths, F♯ minor and E minor sit on either side of B minor. Each shares six of its seven notes, which makes them the easiest keys to change to.

Every key

C D♭D E♭E F F♯G A♭A B♭B

C minor C♯ minor D minor E♭ minor E minor F minor F♯ minor G minor G♯ minor A minor B♭ minor B minor

All twenty-four on one page: chords in every key. To print these chords, open them as a chord chart, or make your own in the chord chart maker. This key on guitar, bass, ukulele and banjo.