D Minor: Notes, Chords and Scale
D minor is a minor key. Its key signature has one flat: B♭. Its scale is D, E, F, G, A, B♭, C, and its seven diatonic chords are Dm, Edim, F, Gm, Am, B♭, C. Below are the 7th chords, Roman numerals, related keys, the Camelot code and a keyboard diagram.
Key signature
1♭
Relative key
Parallel key
Camelot code
7A
Notes
D E F G A B♭ C
Chords in D minor
- iDmD F A
- ii°EdimE G B♭
- IIIFF A C
- ivGmG B♭ D
- vAmA C E
- VIB♭B♭ D F
- VIICC E G
Seventh chords
- i7Dm7D F A C
- iiø7Em7♭5E G B♭ D
- IIImaj7Fmaj7F A C E
- iv7Gm7G B♭ D F
- v7Am7A C E G
- VImaj7B♭maj7B♭ D F A
- VII7C7C E G B♭
How to use these chords
- i, iv and v (Dm, Gm, Am) are the primary chords. The v chord is often played major, as V (A) or V7 (A7), taken from the harmonic minor scale, which raises C to C♯.
- III, VI and VII (F, B♭, C) are major chords. They are the I, IV and V chords of the relative major, F major.
- ii° (Edim) is a diminished chord and often leads to V.
- Common progressions, in Roman numerals: i VI III VII (Dm, B♭, F, C); i iv V (Dm, Gm, A); i VII VI V (Dm, C, B♭, A).
Common uses of D minor
- D minor shares its seven notes and its key signature with its relative major, F major.
- On a piano, one of its seven notes is a black key.
- The root note, D, is an open string on a guitar in standard tuning (E A D G B E), so it can ring under the chords.
- It reads easily for horn sections: B♭ instruments such as trumpet, clarinet and tenor saxophone read it as E minor, and E♭ alto saxophone reads it as B minor.
- In the Camelot system DJs use for harmonic mixing, D minor is 7A; tracks in 6A, 8A and 7B usually mix smoothly with it.
- Open D minor in the Scale and Chord Finder
- Find your song's key from the audio: Detect Key and BPM
- Camelot Wheel: 7A
- Write chords or MIDI in D minor with MIDI LabMIDI Lab, from the same team as SongTools, writes chord progressions, bass, drums and melody as MIDI from a prompt.
- F major: notes and chords
- All 24 major and minor keys
Questions about D minor
What chords are in D minor?
The seven chords in D minor are Dm, Edim, F, Gm, Am, B♭, C (i, ii°, III, iv, v, VI, VII). As seventh chords they are Dm7, Em7♭5, Fmaj7, Gm7, Am7, B♭maj7, C7.
What notes are in the D minor scale?
D, E, F, G, A, B♭, C. Its key signature has one flat: B♭.
What is the relative major of D minor?
F major. It uses the same seven notes and key signature as D minor, starting from F. The parallel major, D major, starts on the same note as D minor but has a different key signature.
What is the Camelot code for D minor?
7A. Next to it on the Camelot wheel are 6A and 8A, and 7B is its relative major, F major.