E minor chord progressions: guitar’s home minor

In E natural minor the seven diatonic chords are: Em, F#dim, G, Am, Bm, C, D. Roman numerals: i ii° III iv v VI VII. Key signature: one sharp (F#), shared with G major (its relative major).

Why guitarists love E minor

Six of the seven diatonic chords have easy open voicings. Em (022000), G (320003), C (x32010), D (xx0232), Am (x02210), Bm (barre or x24432). Only F#dim needs a partial barre. That is why E minor is the most common minor key in rock, folk, and metal repertoire.

Common progressions in E minor

• i-VI-III-VII: Em-C-G-D. Zombie by the Cranberries. Also every heavy-rock ballad.
• i-iv-V-i in harmonic minor: Em-Am-B7-Em. House of the Rising Sun variant.
• i-VII-VI-V: Em-D-C-B7. The descending-bass line, deeply satisfying resolution.
• i-III-VII-VI: Em-G-D-C. Otherside by Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Secondary dominants in E minor

A secondary dominant is a dominant chord that resolves to a chord other than the tonic. In E minor: B7 is the dominant of E minor (V). But if you want to tonicize the iv (A minor) briefly, you can insert E7 before it, treating A minor as a temporary tonic. E7 is the V/iv (“five of four”): a secondary dominant.

Try both

The chord progression generator supports E minor natural and harmonic. Switch presets to hear the difference between the modal v-i and the harmonic V-i.