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C minor

C minor has 3 flats (B♭, E♭ and A♭). Its scale is C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭, its chords are Cm, Ddim, E♭, Fm, Gm, A♭ and B♭, and its relative major is E♭ major.

Make a beat in C minorWrite a melody in this key

Opens the free editor with a trap beat on Cm A♭ E♭ B♭. No account needed to start.

The C minor scale

Whole, half, whole, whole, half, whole, whole: the half steps come between D and E♭, and between G and A♭.

C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭ C

CDFGCE♭A♭B♭

On the piano, C minor uses 3 black keys (E♭, A♭ and B♭) and 4 white keys (C, D, F and G).

The notes of C minor by scale degree
DegreeNoteName
1CTonic
2DSupertonic
3E♭Mediant
4FSubdominant
5GDominant
6A♭Submediant
7B♭Subtonic

The raised seventh

Many songs in C minor raise B♭ to B. That makes the harmonic minor scale, C D E♭ F G A♭ B, and turns the fifth chord from Gm into G major, which pulls hard back to Cm. The editor’s minor progressions play the fifth chord that way.

Chords in C minor

One chord on each note of the scale, built from the scale’s own notes. The Roman numeral says which note it starts on: capitals are major, small letters minor.

iCm
ii°Ddim
IIIE♭
ivFm
vGm
VIA♭
VIIB♭

Which chords sound happy or sad

Dark

Cm Fm Gm

i, iv, v. The minor chords. Cm is home, and the key’s sad colour.

Lifting

E♭ A♭ B♭

III, VI, VII. The major chords, which bring light into a minor song.

Tense

Ddim

ii°. Diminished: tense and unstable, so most minor songs use it only in passing.

A progression in C minor

The epic minor · i–VI–III–VII
Cm
A♭
E♭
B♭
Hear it as

More progressions in C minor

Key signature and related keys

Key signature

3 flats: B♭ E♭ A♭

Written at the start of every line of music, so each B, E and A is played flat. Sharps join in the order F C G D A E B, and flats in the order B E A D G C F.

Relative major

E♭ major

The same seven notes and key signature, starting on E♭.

Parallel major

C major

The same home note, with no sharps or flats. Borrowing a chord from it makes a part sound brighter.

Next to it on the circle of fifths

Keys next to each other share six of their seven notes. See them all on the circle of fifths.

C minor in beats

The editor’s starter beat for this style is written in C minor. It opens the free editor with its own drums, bass and chords at its usual tempo, no account needed.

Detroit / Flint · 210 BPM

Questions about C minor

How many flats are in C minor?

Three: B♭, E♭ and A♭. Those notes are played flat every time, so the key signature has 3 flats, and E♭ major, its relative major, has the same.

What is the relative major of C minor?

E♭ major. It uses the same seven notes and the same key signature as C minor, but starts on E♭, the third note of the scale. The two share every chord, which is why songs move between them so easily.

What chords are in C minor?

Cm, Ddim, E♭, Fm, Gm, A♭ and B♭: one built on each note of the scale (i, ii°, III, iv, v, VI, VII). Many songs play the fifth chord as G major instead of Gm: its B pulls hard back to Cm.

What is a common chord progression in C minor?

i–VI–III–VII: Cm, A♭, E♭ and B♭. It is the minor key’s best-known loop, heard in anthems, EDM and film, and it is the one the beat on this page plays.

Every key

Major keys
C majorG majorD majorA majorE majorB majorF♯ majorD♭ majorA♭ majorE♭ majorB♭ majorF major
Minor keys
A minorE minorB minorF♯ minorC♯ minorG♯ minorD♯ minorB♭ minorF minorC minorG minorD minor

Build a song in C minor

Start with the beat, then add chords, a melody and your voice in the editor, part by part.

Make a beat in C minorAll music keys

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