Chords in the Key of D♭ Major

The key of D♭ major has seven chords, one built on each note of the D♭ major scale: three major, three minor and one diminished. Tap Play on any chord or progression to hear it.

Also written as C# major — same notes, same shapes.

5 flatsRelative minor: B♭Loads on play
The 7 chords

D♭ · E♭m · Fm · G♭ · A♭ · B♭m · Cdim

Every major key follows the same pattern: major, minor, minor, major, major, minor, diminished.

ID♭D♭ Major412341
iiE♭mE♭ Minor613421
iiiFmF Minor134111
IVG♭G♭ Major2134211
VA♭A♭ Major4134211
viB♭mB♭ Minor13421
vii°CdimC Diminished31243
Chord chart

D♭ Major chord chart

DegreeNumeralChordNotes7th chordFunction
1ID♭D♭ – F – A♭D♭maj7Tonic
2iiE♭mE♭ – G♭ – B♭E♭m7Supertonic
3iiiFmF – A♭ – CFm7Mediant
4IVG♭G♭ – B♭ – D♭G♭maj7Subdominant
5VA♭A♭ – C – E♭A♭7Dominant
6viB♭mB♭ – D♭ – FB♭m7Submediant
7vii°CdimC – E♭ – G♭Cm7b5Leading tone

D♭ major scale: D♭ – E♭ – F – G♭ – A♭ – B♭ – C. Key signature: 5 flats (B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭).

Progressions

Common chord progressions in D♭ Major

The pop progression

I – V – vi – IV

  1. ID♭
  2. VA♭
  3. viB♭m
  4. IVG♭

The four-chord loop behind a huge share of modern pop, rock and worship songs.

Three-chord progression

I – IV – V – I

  1. ID♭
  2. IVG♭
  3. VA♭
  4. ID♭

The three primary chords, I, IV and V — the backbone of blues, folk, country and early rock and roll.

Minor-start loop

vi – IV – I – V

  1. viB♭m
  2. IVG♭
  3. ID♭
  4. VA♭

The pop progression started on the vi. Same four chords, but opening on the minor chord makes the loop sound darker.

50s progression

I – vi – IV – V

  1. ID♭
  2. viB♭m
  3. IVG♭
  4. VA♭

The doo-wop progression of 1950s ballads, and still one of the most common loops in songwriting.

ii – V – I

ii7 – V7 – Imaj7

  1. ii7E♭m7
  2. V7A♭7
  3. Imaj7D♭maj7

The jazz cadence, played with 7th chords as it almost always is. The single most common move in jazz standards.

Canon progression

I – V – vi – iii – IV – I – IV – V

  1. ID♭
  2. VA♭
  3. viB♭m
  4. iiiFm
  5. IVG♭
  6. ID♭
  7. IVG♭
  8. VA♭

The eight-chord sequence of Pachelbel's Canon, borrowed by countless pop songs since.

Want more? Generate a progression in D♭ Major by style, or build your own in the Chord Progression Player.

7th chords

7th chords in the key of D♭ Major

Add the next note of the scale on top of each chord and you get its diatonic 7th chord — the sound of jazz, soul and R&B in D♭ major.

Imaj7D♭maj7D♭ Major 7th413241
ii7E♭m7E♭ Minor 7th213
iii7Fm7F Minor 7th131111
IVmaj7G♭maj7G♭ Major 7th4321
V7A♭7A♭ Dominant 7th4131211
vi7B♭m7B♭ Minor 7th13121
viiø7Cm7b5C Minor 7th Flat 531324
On guitar

Playing in D♭ Major on guitar

None of the 7 chords in D♭ major is an open chord in standard tuning — every one needs a barre or a moveable shape. A capo lets you swap those for open shapes:

  • Capo 1 + C major shapes

    Finger C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, Bdim — they sound as D♭, E♭m, Fm, G♭, A♭, B♭m, Cdim. 5 of the 7 shapes are open chords.

    See the C major chords

  • Capo 6 + G major shapes

    Finger G, Am, Bm, C, D, Em, F#dim — they sound as D♭, E♭m, Fm, G♭, A♭, B♭m, Cdim. 5 of the 7 shapes are open chords.

    See the G major chords
Closest keys on the circle of fifths

They share six of D♭ major's seven notes. Explore every key on the Circle of Fifths.

Other major keys
Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Tools
Circle of FifthsSee every key, its relative minor and its neighbours on one wheelKey FinderPaste a progression and detect its key with Roman numeral analysisChord Progression GeneratorPick a key and style to generate a diatonic progressionCapo CalculatorFind the capo position to play any key with open shapes