E minor the chords in the key
- Scale
- E F# G A B C D
- Key signature
- one sharp: F#
- Relative major
- G major
The seven chords
Seventh chords
| Numeral | Chord | Notes | Sound |
|---|---|---|---|
| i7 | Em7 | E G B D | |
| iiø7 | F#m7b5 | F# A C E | |
| IIImaj7 | Gmaj7 | G B D F# | |
| iv7 | Am7 | A C E G | |
| v7 | Bm7 | B D F# A | |
| VImaj7 | Cmaj7 | C E G B | |
| VII7 | D7 | D F# A C |
V and V7: the raised-seventh V most songs use
From the harmonic minor scale: the seventh note raised a semitone, D to D#.
Common progressions in E minor
- i–iv–v straight from the natural minor scale
- i–VI–III–VII the minor pop loop
- i–iv–V with the raised-seventh V, which pulls harder back to i
On guitar
Capo 7. With a capo on fret 7, play the open shapes Am for Em, Dm for Am, E for B: they sound as the i, iv and V (Em, Am and B). The VI chord, C, does not become an open shape at that fret.
How the chords of E minor work
E minor uses the notes E F# G A B C D, one sharp: F#: the natural minor scale, the same notes as G major, its relative major. Its chords from the scale are i Em, ii° F#dim, III G, iv Am, v Bm, VI C, VII D.
In practice most songs in E minor play B or B7 as the V chord instead of Bm: raising D to D# gives a note a semitone below E that pulls back to it. That raised seventh comes from the harmonic minor scale (E F# G A B C D#). So a song with both D and B in it is still in E minor, and the finder counts B and B7 as belonging to this key.
Have a list of chords and not sure of the key? The key finder scores it against all 24 keys and can transpose it.
What this page cannot do
- Only major and minor keys. Dorian, Mixolydian and the other modes are not covered: a song in D Mixolydian (D, C, G) uses the chords of G major and will look like G major here.
- Finding a key from chord names is a best fit, not a certainty. A chord list cannot tell a key from its relative major, which shares every chord; the melody and where the song comes to rest decide it.
- Songs change key. A bridge or a last chorus a step higher is a new key, with its own page.
- The sound is a simple synthesised tone made in your browser, each chord in root position, not a recorded piano or guitar.