# E♭ Minor piano chord (E♭m)

E♭m contains E♭, G♭ and B♭. A minor third with a perfect fifth above the root. Every note is a black key.

- Canonical page: https://piano.org/chords/minor/e-flat/
- Entity: chord:minor:e-flat
- Notes: E♭ G♭ B♭
- Formula: 1 ♭3 5
- Intervals from root: P1, m3, P5
- Interval stack (semitones): 3 4
- Also written: E♭m, Ebm, E♭ minor
- Parameters: A440, 12-TET, 165 mm octave, spans centre to centre

## Construction

| Degree | Note | Interval from root | Semitones |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | E♭ | Perfect unison | 0 |
| ♭3 | G♭ | Minor third | 3 |
| 5 | B♭ | Perfect fifth | 7 |

## Fingering

Rest your right hand over the notes with finger 1 on E♭, finger 3 on G♭, finger 5 on B♭. The left hand mirrors it.
Right hand 1-3-5, left hand 5-3-1. Source: piano.org fingering method v1.

## Inversions

| Position | Bass | Notes in order | Figured bass | Span |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Root position | E♭ | E♭3 G♭3 B♭3 | 5/3 | 7 st, 96 mm |
| First inversion (E♭m/G♭) | G♭ | G♭3 B♭3 E♭4 | 6/3 | 9 st, 124 mm |
| Second inversion (E♭m/B♭) | B♭ | B♭3 E♭4 G♭4 | 6/4 | 8 st, 110 mm |

## Voicings (5)

| Voicing | Notes | Span | Relation | Omits or adds |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Close, root position | E♭3 G♭3 B♭3 | 7 st, 96 mm | identical | none |
| Close, first inversion | G♭3 B♭3 E♭4 | 9 st, 124 mm | identical | none |
| Close, second inversion | B♭3 E♭4 G♭4 | 8 st, 110 mm | identical | none |
| Open, fifth on top | E♭2 B♭2 G♭3 | 15 st, 206 mm | identical | none |
| Root and third only | E♭3 G♭3 | 3 st, 41 mm | subset | omits B♭ |

## Diatonic function by key

| Key | Roman numeral | Function |
| --- | --- | --- |
| D♭ major | ii | Predominant |
| E♭ minor | i | Tonic, home |
| G♭ major | vi | Tonic substitute |
| G♯ minor | v | Minor dominant |
| B♭ minor | iv | Subdominant |
| B major | iii | Tonic substitute |

Classification system: common-practice functional harmony.

## Progressions (8)

| Progression | Key | Role | Sequence | Voice leading |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ii, V, I | D♭ major | ii | E♭m to A♭ to D♭ | E♭m opens the phrase |
| ii°, v, i | E♭ minor | i | Fdim to B♭m to E♭m | 1 tone held from B♭m |
| iv, i | E♭ minor | i | A♭m to E♭m | 1 tone held from A♭m |
| i, ♭VI, ii°, v | E♭ minor | i | E♭m to C♭ to Fdim to B♭m | E♭m opens the phrase |
| vi, IV, I, V | G♭ major | vi | E♭m to C♭ to G♭ to D♭ | E♭m opens the phrase |
| I, vi | G♭ major | vi | G♭ to E♭m | 2 tones held from G♭ |
| v, i | G♯ minor | v | D♯m to G♯m | E♭m opens the phrase |
| ii°, v, i | G♯ minor | v | A♯dim to D♯m to G♯m | 1 tone held from A♯dim |

## One-edit neighbors

| Becomes | Edit | Changes | Common tones |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| E♭m7 | 1 ♭3 5 ♭7 | adds D♭ | 3 |
| E♭mMaj7 | 1 ♭3 5 7 | adds D | 3 |
| E♭m6 | 1 ♭3 5 6 | adds C | 3 |
| E♭ | 1 3 5 | G♭ becomes G | 2 |
| E♭dim | 1 ♭3 ♭5 | B♭ becomes B♭♭ | 2 |
| E♭sus2 | 1 2 5 | G♭ becomes F | 2 |
| E♭sus4 | 1 4 5 | G♭ becomes A♭ | 2 |
| E♭maj7 | 1 3 5 7 | G♭ becomes G, D | 2 |
| E♭7 | 1 3 5 ♭7 | G♭ becomes G, D♭ | 2 |
| E♭m7♭5 | 1 ♭3 ♭5 ♭7 | B♭ becomes B♭♭, D♭ | 2 |
| E♭dim7 | 1 ♭3 ♭5 ♭♭7 | B♭ becomes B♭♭, D♭♭ | 2 |
| E♭7sus4 | 1 4 5 ♭7 | G♭ becomes A♭, D♭ | 2 |

## Set theory

- Absolute pitch classes: {3, 6, 10}
- Relative pitch classes: [0, 3, 7]
- Normal order: [3, 6, 10]
- Prime form: (037)
- Forte number: 3-11
- Interval vector: <001110>

## Frequencies (close root position)

| Note | MIDI | Frequency |
| --- | --- | --- |
| E♭3 | 51 | 155.56 Hz |
| G♭3 | 54 | 185.00 Hz |
| B♭3 | 58 | 233.08 Hz |

## Questions and answers

### What notes are in E♭m?

E♭m contains E♭, G♭ and B♭. The formula is 1, ♭3, 5.

### How do you play E♭m on piano?

Play E♭, G♭ and B♭ together. Right hand fingers 1, 3, 5; left hand 5, 3, 1. Every note is a black key.

### What are the inversions of E♭m?

3 positions: root position E♭ G♭ B♭, E♭m/G♭, E♭m/B♭.

### What keys contain E♭m?

6: ii in D♭ major, i in E♭ minor, vi in G♭ major, v in G♯ minor, iv in B♭ minor, iii in B major.

### What is the difference between E♭m and E♭m7?

Adds D♭. 3 of the notes are shared.

### What is an easy E♭m for small hands?

The root and third only voicing, E♭3 G♭3, spans 3 semitones or about 41 mm.

### What are the frequencies of E♭m?

From E♭3 at A440 in 12-TET: 155.56, 185.00, 233.08 Hz.

### What is the set class of E♭m?

Prime form (037), Forte 3-11, interval vector &lt;001110&gt;.

### How do I transpose E♭m to another key?

Keep the 1, ♭3, 5 formula on the new root. Cm is C, E♭, G; C♯m is C♯, E, G♯.

### Is D♯m the same as E♭m?

Enharmonically yes: the same piano keys and the same sound, spelled differently.

## Provenance

Every derived value above is computed by the piano.org theory kernel from the root, the quality and the stated parameters. Nothing is hand-entered per chord.

Machine record: https://piano.org/api/knowledge/v1/entities/chord:minor:e-flat
Last reviewed: 2026-08-12