# B minor
**B minor** is a minor key whose scale consists of the pitches B, C♯, D, E, F♯, G, and A, and whose key signature contains two sharps, F♯ and C♯.[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor) Its relative major is [D major](https://www.edgepedia.org/d-major), which shares the same key signature and the same seven notes with a different tonic.[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Key signature | 2 sharps: F♯, C♯[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor) |
| Natural minor scale | B – C♯ – D – E – F♯ – G – A[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor) |
| Relative major | D major, same signature and notes, different tonic[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor) |
| Parallel major | B major, same tonic but 5 sharps[2](https://theorypractice.app/learn/key-signature/b-minor) |
| Diatonic chords | Bm, C♯°, D, Em, F♯m, G, A (i, ii°, III, iv, v, VI, VII)[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor) |
| Frequency in repertoire | 37 of 1,462 songs in the OpenScore Lieder corpus (2.5%), 18th of 24 keys[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) |
| Famous works | Bach's Mass in B minor, Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6, Schubert's Unfinished Symphony, Dvořák's Cello Concerto[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) |
## Key signature and relative keys
B minor shares its key signature with D major: two sharps, F♯ and C♯, the first two sharps in the fixed order F, C, G, D, A, E, B.[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor) • [3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) [A minor](https://www.edgepedia.org/a-minor) key that shares a key signature with a major key is called its relative minor, and the relative minor always lies three half steps below its relative major.[4](https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Music/Music_Theory/Music_Fundamentals_%28Ewell_and_Schmidt-Jones%29/03%3A_Minor_Scales_and_Keys/3.01%3A_Minor_Keys_and_Scales) The key signature alone does not say whether a piece is in D major or B minor; the last chord and the notes the melody leans on decide which.[5](https://maikstrings.com/glossary/b-minor.html) • [3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor)
The parallel major, [B major](https://www.edgepedia.org/b-major), keeps the same tonic note but changes the signature to 5 sharps; on the circle of fifths the parallel major sits three steps to the sharp side, and its 3rd, 6th, and 7th degrees each shift a semitone compared with the minor.[2](https://theorypractice.app/learn/key-signature/b-minor)
## The three forms of the scale
The natural minor scale follows the step pattern whole, half, whole, whole, half, whole, whole. In B minor the two half steps fall between C♯ and D and between F♯ and G.[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) The seventh degree, A, lies a whole tone below the tonic, so in the natural form it is called the subtonic rather than a leading note.[2](https://theorypractice.app/learn/key-signature/b-minor)
- **Natural minor**: B – C♯ – D – E – F♯ – G – A[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor)
- **Harmonic minor**: B – C♯ – D – E – F♯ – G – A♯, with the 7th raised a semitone[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor)
- **Melodic minor, ascending**: B – C♯ – D – E – F♯ – G♯ – A♯, with the 6th and 7th raised; descending, it returns to the natural form[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor) • [3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor)
The raised notes are accidentals written next to the notes and are never added to the key signature.[2](https://theorypractice.app/learn/key-signature/b-minor) • [3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) Raising the 7th to A♯ restores the semitone pull up to B, giving the key a leading tone.[2](https://theorypractice.app/learn/key-signature/b-minor)
## Chords of the key
The seven diatonic triads of the natural minor are Bm, C♯°, D, Em, F♯m, G, and A, built on the degrees i, ii°, III, iv, v, VI, and VII.[1](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor) With the raised 7th of the harmonic form, two chords change: the chord on the 5th degree becomes F♯ major (F♯ – A♯ – C♯), and the chord on the raised 7th degree becomes A♯ diminished.[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor)
In minor keys, the major V appears far more frequently in composers' writing than the pure scale's minor v, since raising the 7th produces a leading tone, A♯, lying a half step beneath the tonic.[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) A typical cadence in the key runs Bm → Em → F♯ → Bm (i–iv–V–i).[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) On guitar, the Bm–G–D–A progression (i–VI–III–VII) is described as a staple of rock and pop songwriting in this key.[6](https://strumandkey.com/scales/b-natural-minor/)
## How common is B minor
Counts from open datasets place B minor in the middle range of the 24 keys. Among the 1,462 art songs in the OpenScore Lieder corpus, which is made up almost entirely of 19th-century works, B minor accounts for 37 songs, or 2.5% of the whole collection and 8.1% of the 456 songs thought to be in minor keys, placing it 18th among the 24 keys by number of songs.[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) The Mutopia Project counts 30 of 1,974 scores in the key (1.5%, 16th of 24); [MusicBrainz](https://www.edgepedia.org/musicbrainz) lists 430 of 13,669 cataloged works with an editor-entered key (3.1%, 14th); Open Opus finds 94 of 3,587 work titles naming a key (2.6%, 14th); and machine estimates of 63,124 commercial recordings put 1,371 in B minor (2.2%, 18th).[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) An even split over 24 keys would be 4.2% each, so these figures sit below that baseline.[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor)
Among MusicBrainz composers with many keyed works, [Felix Mendelssohn](https://www.edgepedia.org/felix-mendelssohn) has 5 of 80 works in B minor (6.2%), [Gabriel Fauré](https://www.edgepedia.org/gabriel-faure) 3 of 48 (6.2%), and [Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky](https://www.edgepedia.org/pyotr-ilyich-tchaikovsky) 3 of 43 (7.0%).[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor)
## Character and notable works
According to the composer and theorist Christian Friedrich Daniel Schubart (1739–1791), B minor conveys a calm submission to destiny along with a very soft lament, a characterization that scholars see as matching how Bach employed the key in his St John Passion. By the end of the Baroque era, the composer-theorist Francesco Galeazzi (1758–1819) opined that B minor was not suitable for music in good taste. Beethoven labeled a B-minor melodic idea in one of his sketchbooks as a "black key".[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor)
The key's catalog of works is substantial. [Johann Sebastian Bach](https://www.edgepedia.org/johann-sebastian-bach) wrote the [Mass in B minor](https://www.edgepedia.org/mass-in-b-minor), the Orchestral Suite No. 2 (BWV 1067), the Flute Sonata in B minor (BWV 1030), and the Prelude and Fugue in B minor (BWV 544), among others; in [The Well-Tempered Clavier](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-well-tempered-clavier), Book 1, B minor is No. 24, the Prelude and Fugue BWV 869.[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor) Later works include Chopin's Scherzo No. 1 (Op. 20) and Piano Sonata No. 3 (Op. 58), Schubert's Symphony No. 8 (Unfinished, D. 759), Liszt's Piano Sonata (S. 178), Dvořák's Cello Concerto (Op. 104), Elgar's Violin Concerto, and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6 (Pathétique, Op. 74) and Manfred Symphony.[3](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor)
In popular music, songs identified in B minor include [Hotel California](https://www.edgepedia.org/hotel-california) by the Eagles, The Show Must Go On by Queen, Reptilia by [The Strokes](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-strokes), Moves Like Jagger by [Maroon 5](https://www.edgepedia.org/maroon-5), and Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd.[7](https://www.hooktheory.com/cheat-sheet/key/b/Minor)
## References
1. [B Minor: Key Signature, Scale & Chords, Circle of Fifths](https://www.circlefifth.com/key/b-minor)
2. [B Minor Key Signature — Sharps, Flats & Scale, Theory Practice](https://theorypractice.app/learn/key-signature/b-minor)
3. [B Minor Scale, Key Signature and Chords, Music Theory Print](https://musictheoryprint.com/keys/b-minor)
4. [3.1: Minor Keys and Scales, Music Fundamentals (Ewell and Schmidt-Jones), Humanities LibreTexts](https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Music/Music_Theory/Music_Fundamentals_%28Ewell_and_Schmidt-Jones%29/03%3A_Minor_Scales_and_Keys/3.01%3A_Minor_Keys_and_Scales)
5. [B minor — two sharps, scale, chords and the relative key D major, Maikstrings](https://maikstrings.com/glossary/b-minor.html)
6. [B Natural Minor Scale, StrumAndKey](https://strumandkey.com/scales/b-natural-minor/)
7. [B Minor Cheat Sheet: Scale, Chords, Midi Files, Hooktheory](https://www.hooktheory.com/cheat-sheet/key/b/Minor)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical practice and theory › Instruments, theory, and world traditions › Pitch, tuning, scales, and musical acoustics*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license