D minor chord on piano
Find the D minor notes, inspect their piano positions, and compare inversions with an audible reference.
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Compare another chord
C Minor
C4 · E♭4 · G4
Notes and intervals
| Degree | Notes | Semitones |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | D4 | 0 |
| ♭3 | F4 | 3 |
| 5 | A4 | 7 |
The notes and their roles
D minor contains D, F and A. From the root, the semitone offsets are 0, 3, 7. The degree formula 1, ♭3, 5 describes each member relative to the root, not its order in a particular voicing.
| Note | Role | Semitones above root |
|---|---|---|
| D | Root | 0 |
| F | Minor third | 3 |
| A | Perfect fifth | 7 |
Read this shape accurately
D, F and A form a minor chord using three white keys. White-key color does not determine quality: compare the three-semitone D–F span with the four-semitone F–A span.
Change only the third
Hold D and A steady. Raise F by one semitone to F♯ and the quality changes to major. The root and perfect fifth do not change. This isolates the interval that distinguishes the two triads.
Choose a bass note
The root-position octave example is D4 · F4 · A4. Inversions put a different member in the bass while retaining D as the root. The table gives pitch-class order; move the leading notes up an octave as needed to keep each example ascending.
| Position | Notes from the bass | Bass |
|---|---|---|
| Root position | D · F · A | D |
| First inversion | F · A · D | F |
| Second inversion | A · D · F | A |
A short listening check
Play D minor together, then as separate notes. Name the minor third before looking at the display. Repeat in first inversion and check that F is the bass while D remains the root.
- Choose the displayed root and quality in the chord explorer.
- Compare root position with one inversion at the same tempo.
- Save both examples in a named practice collection, or export a reference with note names.
Sources and methods
- Open Music Theory: Triads
- Enharmonic notes
- ChordLilt product contract
- Inverted triads