F Minor

Chords in the key of

The scale’s notes are numbered from 1 to 7. Roman numerals are used to label the basic triad (1-3-5) chords built on each of those notes.

The notes of the F natural minor scale are:

F – G – A♭ – B♭ – C – D♭ – E♭

Key of F minor

i ii° III iv v VI VII
Fm Gdim A♭ B♭m Cm D♭ E♭
F minor G diminished A flat major B flat minor C minor D flat major E flat major
F - A♭ - C G - B♭ - D♭ A♭ - C - E♭ B♭ - D♭ - F C - E♭ - G D♭ - F - A♭ E♭ - G - B♭

Swipe to see all chords →

That’s the diatonic set. If you stay strictly inside the key, these are your friends. The pattern of naming chords for every minor key is:

Minor, Diminished, Major, Minor, Minor, Major, Major. Numerals in UPPERCASE (III, VI, VII) denote major chords, and numerals in lowercase (i, ii°, iv, v) denote minor chords.

F Minor: Extended Chords

F HARMONIC Minor: RESOLVING + cinematic

F natural/diatonic minor often borrows the 7th note from F harmonic minor; it’s just one semitone higher but creates and resolves tension far better than its diatonic counterpart.

This raises F minor’s E♭ to E, which affects F minor’s III, v, & VII chords:

Borrowing tension: F harmonic minor

III+ V vii°
A♭aug C Edim
A flat augmented C major E diminished
A♭ - C - E C - E - G E - G - B♭

Swipe to see all chords →