Key of C minor
The key of C minor has three flats — B♭, E♭ and A♭. Its natural minor scale runs C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭, and building a triad on each of those seven notes — stacking thirds from the scale itself — produces the key's seven chords.
That gives three minor chords, three major chords and one diminished chord. Home base is Cm (i), flanked by Fm (iv) and Gm (v); the majors E♭ (III), A♭ (VI) and B♭ (VII) brighten the key, and D° (ii°) appears mostly as a passing chord.
Relative major: E♭ major — the same seven chords, with E♭ as home base.
The seven chords of C minor
Common questions
- What chords are in the key of C minor?
- The seven chords in the key of C minor are Cm (i), D° (ii°), E♭ (III), Fm (iv), Gm (v), A♭ (VI) and B♭ (VII).
- What is the relative major of C minor?
- E♭ major. The two keys share the same key signature and the same seven chords — E♭ major simply treats E♭, not Cm, as home.
- How many sharps or flats does C minor have?
- C minor has three flats: B♭, E♭ and A♭.