What notes are in an F♯ minor chord?

F♯ minor contains three notes: F♯ (the root), A (the minor third), and C♯ (the perfect fifth).

How do you play F♯ minor on guitar?

Most commonly an E-minor-shape barre at the 2nd fret: index finger across all six strings on the 2nd fret, ring finger on the 4th fret of the 5th string, pinky on the 4th fret of the 4th string. The 3rd and 2nd strings sound A and C♯ from the barre alone.

How is F♯ minor different from F♯ major?

Only the third changes. F♯ major has A♯; F♯ minor has A natural. The root (F♯) and fifth (C♯) are the same in both.

What's the relative major of F♯ minor?

A major — both keys share the same three-sharp signature (F♯, C♯, G♯), and F♯ minor is built on the 6th scale degree of A major.

F# minor chord — notes, intervals, and practice

F♯ minor is a three-sharp key (F♯, C♯, G♯) with a brooding, introspective character. The chord contains F♯, A, and C♯. The key has a long Romantic-era pedigree — Bach's WTC, Mendelssohn's "Italian" Symphony finale, and Tchaikovsky's First Piano Concerto cadenza all sit in F♯ minor. The relative major is A major.

Intervals

The F# minor chord stacks two thirds on the root. Each interval and its size in semitones:

F#→Aminor 3rd3 semitones
A→C#major 3rd4 semitones
F#→C#perfect 5th7 semitones

On the keyboard

Each note of the F# minor chord highlighted on a piano. Pitch class is what matters — any octave works.

On the guitar

One voicing of the F# minor chord on a six-string guitar fretboard.

Common mistakes

F♯ minor's root and fifth are sharp (F♯ and C♯); the third (A) is plain. The most common slip is reading F♯ as F natural, which voices an F major chord — wrong root, wrong colour. On guitar, F♯ minor is most often an E-minor-shape barre at the 2nd fret: index across all strings on fret 2, ring and pinky at fret 4 on strings 5 and 4. The three-sharp signature is generally readable but missing the C♯ on neighbouring chords is a common error in F♯ minor literature.

In context

F♯ minor is the i chord in F♯ minor, the vi chord in A major (the relative-major position), the ii in E major, and the iii in D major. The progression F♯m–D–A–E (i–VI–III–VII in F♯ minor / vi–IV–I–V in A major) is the harmonic spine of countless pop songs. Mendelssohn's "Italian" Symphony finale is in F♯ minor; the brooding opening contrasts sharply with the sunny A major of the first three movements.

Drill it

The F# minor chord is one of 48 in the Chord Trainer. Open the full trainer to practice it alongside related chords with timing and best-time tracking.

Open the Chord Trainer →Or try today's Etudle puzzle

Frequently asked

What notes are in an F♯ minor chord?: F♯ minor contains three notes: F♯ (the root), A (the minor third), and C♯ (the perfect fifth).
How do you play F♯ minor on guitar?: Most commonly an E-minor-shape barre at the 2nd fret: index finger across all six strings on the 2nd fret, ring finger on the 4th fret of the 5th string, pinky on the 4th fret of the 4th string. The 3rd and 2nd strings sound A and C♯ from the barre alone.
How is F♯ minor different from F♯ major?: Only the third changes. F♯ major has A♯; F♯ minor has A natural. The root (F♯) and fifth (C♯) are the same in both.
What's the relative major of F♯ minor?: A major — both keys share the same three-sharp signature (F♯, C♯, G♯), and F♯ minor is built on the 6th scale degree of A major.