Dark Piano Chords

Flattening the third is the whole difference between a chord that sounds happy and one that does not, and everything on this list has that flattened third. What changes between them is the note stacked on top, which decides whether the chord reads as sad, as smoky, or as something more ambiguous.

72 chords carry this tag, across 6 chord types: minor, minor 7th, half-diminished 7th, minor-major 7th, minor 6th, minor 9th. Each one has its notes spelled for that key, a fingering worked out from its own shape, a staff, and a keyboard you can hear it on.

Triads

Three notes. Every one of these is playable with one hand from day one, and between them they cover most of the music anybody starts out learning.

Minor Chords

Minor chords have a darker, sadder, and more contemplative sound than major chords.

Cm
C – Eb – G
C#m
C# – E – G#
Dm
D – F – A
Ebm
Eb – Gb – Bb
Em
E – G – B
Fm
F – Ab – C
F#m
F# – A – C#
Gm
G – Bb – D
G#m
G# – B – D#
Am
A – C – E
Bbm
Bb – Db – F
Bm
B – D – F#

Seventh chords

A triad with a fourth note stacked on top. Sevenths are where harmony stops being just bright or dark and starts having a direction it wants to go.

Minor 7th Chords

Minor 7th chords blend sadness with sophistication. A staple of jazz and neo-soul.

Cm7
C – Eb – G – Bb
C#m7
C# – E – G# – B
Dm7
D – F – A – C
Ebm7
Eb – Gb – Bb – Db
Em7
E – G – B – D
Fm7
F – Ab – C – Eb
F#m7
F# – A – C# – E
Gm7
G – Bb – D – F
G#m7
G# – B – D# – F#
Am7
A – C – E – G
Bbm7
Bb – Db – F – Ab
Bm7
B – D – F# – A

Half-Diminished 7th Chords

Half-diminished chords are hollow and unresolved. Every minor two-five starts on one.

Cm7b5
C – Eb – Gb – Bb
C#m7b5
C# – E – G – B
Dm7b5
D – F – Ab – C
Ebm7b5
Eb – Gb – Bbb – Db
Em7b5
E – G – Bb – D
Fm7b5
F – Ab – Cb – Eb
F#m7b5
F# – A – C – E
Gm7b5
G – Bb – Db – F
G#m7b5
G# – B – D – F#
Am7b5
A – C – Eb – G
Bbm7b5
Bb – Db – Fb – Ab
Bm7b5
B – D – F – A

Minor-Major 7th Chords

Minor-major 7th chords sound uneasy rather than sad, a staple of suspense scoring.

CmMaj7
C – Eb – G – B
C#mMaj7
C# – E – G# – B#
DmMaj7
D – F – A – C#
EbmMaj7
Eb – Gb – Bb – D
EmMaj7
E – G – B – D#
FmMaj7
F – Ab – C – E
F#mMaj7
F# – A – C# – E#
GmMaj7
G – Bb – D – F#
G#mMaj7
G# – B – D# – F##
AmMaj7
A – C – E – G#
BbmMaj7
Bb – Db – F – A
BmMaj7
B – D – F# – A#

Added-note chords

Triads with an extra colour note and no seventh. They stay consonant, which is why pop, gospel and film writing lean on them so hard.

Minor 6th Chords

Minor 6th chords are bittersweet and expressive, used in jazz and bossa nova.

Cm6
C – Eb – G – A
C#m6
C# – E – G# – A#
Dm6
D – F – A – B
Ebm6
Eb – Gb – Bb – C
Em6
E – G – B – C#
Fm6
F – Ab – C – D
F#m6
F# – A – C# – D#
Gm6
G – Bb – D – E
G#m6
G# – B – D# – E#
Am6
A – C – E – F#
Bbm6
Bb – Db – F – G
Bm6
B – D – F# – G#

Extended chords

Ninths, elevenths and thirteenths. These are wider than one hand, so each page shows the two-hand voicing a player actually uses rather than a stack of five notes in a row.

Minor 9th Chords

Minor 9th chords are smoky and relaxed, the backbone of neo-soul and bossa nova.

Cm9
C – Eb – G – Bb – D
C#m9
C# – E – G# – B – D#
Dm9
D – F – A – C – E
Ebm9
Eb – Gb – Bb – Db – F
Em9
E – G – B – D – F#
Fm9
F – Ab – C – Eb – G
F#m9
F# – A – C# – E – G#
Gm9
G – Bb – D – F – A
G#m9
G# – B – D# – F# – A#
Am9
A – C – E – G – B
Bbm9
Bb – Db – F – Ab – C
Bm9
B – D – F# – A – C#

Other tags

The same 288 chords, sorted a different way.

StylePop84Jazz192Blues36Rock48Classical72Gospel & Soul120Funk72Film Score96
MoodBright48Dark72Tense96Dreamy72
UseFirst Chords34Songwriting96Passing Chords36Two-Hand Chords108
LevelBeginner54Intermediate97Advanced137

Back to the full chord library for all 288 chords grouped by type.