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Chord & Fret

Harmonic field of A minor on cavaquinho

A minor: A – B – C – D – E – F – G. In the shapes below, the tonic opens with the bass on E. On the cavaquinho, four steel strings tuned D–G–B–D pack the chord into a small, bright space — every finger counts. Its four steel strings give a bright, sharp attack that cuts through the mix and drives the beat.

Am7, 2 2 1 5Am72314EACG
i · tonic2 2 1 5
Bm7b5, 3 2 0 0Bm7b521FABD
ii° · subdominant3 2 0 0
Cmaj7, 2 4 1 2Cmaj72413EBCE
III · tonic2 4 1 2
Dm7, 3 2 1 0Dm7321FACD
iv · subdominant3 2 1 0
Em7, 2 0 0 0Em71EGBD
v · dominant2 0 0 0
Fmaj7, 3 2 1 2Fmaj74213FACE
VI · subdominant3 2 1 2
G7, 5 4 3 3G73211GBDF
VII · subdominant5 4 3 3

This is the natural-minor field. In practice the v often becomes V (major) or V7 — borrowed from the harmonic minor — to create the leading tone that pulls back to the tonic.

These are the first positions of every degree of A minor on cavaquinho. In Chord & Fret, the Circle of Fifths opens the full field — every degree with all its positions, audio and the key's secondary dominants. Open in Chord & Fret →

See the full harmonic field of A minor →