Each minor scale can be used to create chords in that key. These can be used to create chord progressions that underpin melodies and will allow you to create pieces in any key you like.
Chords in D Minor are created from the D Minor scale. The notes in the D natural minor scale are shown below along with the degree of the scale.
D – 1,Tonic
E – 2,supertonic
F – 3,mediant
G – 4,subdominant
A – 5,dominant
Bb – 6,submediant
C – 7,leading note
You may notice that these notes are the same as the F Major scale which also has one flat. This is because F Major is the relative major key to D Minor.
As with all keys, we can create chords on each note of the D minor scale. Below you can see the chords in D minor and their individual notes. Notice that we have a B flat in some of the chords. This is because D natural minor has one flat in its key signature.
Each chord is also called a triad and consists of the root note, the 3rd above and the 5th above (in the scale). If we use this idea for every note of the scale, we get all 7 chords in the key of D minor.
As you can see, we can label each chord according to the root note and using Roman numerals. Learn more aboutRoman numeral chord labelling. For a lightning quick summary, upper case numerals are MAJOR, lower case are MINOR and the little circle means DIMINISHED.
Seventh Chords In D Minor
Notice that all of the chords labelled above are three note chords, otherwise known as triads. It is also possible to make four note chords on these different scale notes. These would be called seventh chords. The first note of the chord will stay the same but you will simply add an additional note, a seventh above the tonic. Take a look at the example below:
i – D minor seventh: D – F – A – C
ii° – E minor seventh flat five: E – G – Bb – D
III – F major seventh: F – A – C – E
iv – G minor seventh: G – Bb – D – F
v – A minor seventh: A – C – E – G
VI – Bb major seventh: Bb – D – F – A
VII – C dominant seventh: C – E – G – Bb
Chord Progressions in D Minor
i – VI – VII (Dm – Bb – C)
i – iv – VII (Dm – Gm – C)
i – iv – v (Dm – Gm – Am)
i – VI – III – VII (Dm – Bb – F – C)
ii – v – I (Em7b5 – Am – Dm)
Ear Training and Chords
To develop as a musician you’ll want to be able to recognise chords by ear. This is where ear training comes in. My recommendation for this is Tonegym as they have a comprehensive and fun program for training your ears! It’s what has gotten the best results with for my own students.
In the ‘tools’ section of their site, Tonegym even have a chord player that allows you to listen virtually any chord.
For an in-depth look at ear training, here’s my full review of Tonegym.
Piano Chords in D Minor
If you are interested in playing the piano version of these chords then below are diagrams for all chords in D minor.
Guitar Chords in D Minor
Here are the guitar charts for chords in D minor. The numbers inside the green circle show a suggested fingering for each chord.
Chord Inversions
There are different versions of these chords that we could play called ‘inversions’. To invert a chord means to change the order of the notes by having the 3rd, 5th or 7th note as the lowest note in pitch. For more on chord inversions on this see ourcomplete guide to chords.
What should I learn next?
The relative major of D Minor is F major. The relative major key means that it has the same key signature (one flat- Bb) but the scale starts and ends on F natural. Learn about chords in F Major.
The original Fantastic Four are C, G, F, and Am. They all belong in C Major as the I, V, IV, and vi diatonic chords, respectively. But there's a version of these four chords in all keys. In D Minor, your magical four chords are Dm, B♭, Gm, and A.
The D minor chord is one of those essential beginner chords you should learn early on in your guitar playing career. In terms of difficulty, it's right in the middle of the pack—not as easy as E minor but nowhere near as hard as F major or B major.
For a major chord, the intervals are a major third and a perfect fifth, resulting in a bright and consonant sound. In contrast, a minor chord has a minor third and a perfect fifth, creating a more melancholic and introspective atmosphere.
D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B♭, and C. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative major is F major and its parallel major is D major.
This form of Dm requires you to place your fingers on the first, second, and third frets, of the first, second, and third strings, while strumming the top four strings.
The D minor chord v is the A minor chord, and contains the notes A, C, and E. This dominant chord's root / starting note is the 5th note (or scale degree) of the D natural minor scale.
Both major and minor chord qualities are built on the triad chord in the same key plus one added note - the 6th note of the major scale in the previous step. So the D major 6th chord is based on the D major chord, and the D minor 6th chord is based on the D minor chord. The added 6th note in both cases is B.
The D minor chord is a relatively easy chord to play, but it may still take some time for beginners to get used to since it involves stretching your fingers across three frets. If you're just starting to play guitar, this is key chord to learn because it's frequently found in songs of all genres.
It's not. It's a Spinal Tap reference. Some composers may very well have believed there was one key that was better for sadness- but tuning a piano was an issue back in the day. Chords genuinely sounded different from each other, but that doesn't really affect us all that much anymore.
Known as a I-IV-V (one-four-five') progression, or 'three-chord trick', the chords are built on the first, fourth and fifth notes of the major scale. Learn the scales to find out the chords.
Intersecting Chords Theorem: The Intersecting Chords Theorem states that when two chords of a circle intersect within the circle, the product of the segments of one chord is equal to the product of the segments of the other chord.
A seventh chord is built by adding an extra note to a triad which is an interval of a 7th above the root note. e.g. If you build a triad on C you will use the notes (C-E-G). If you add a another note a 7th above C then you will have C-E-G-B. You have just created a basic seventh chord.
Common chord progressions in D major includes: I-IV-V (Dmaj, Gmaj, Amaj), this is probably one of the most popular chord progressions in any key, but particularly for D major since this gives a very triumphal feeling to the song.
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Introduction: My name is Duncan Muller, I am a enchanting, good, gentle, modern, tasty, nice, elegant person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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