Sad progression 1 in A minor
Am · A7 · Dm · E7
i · V7/iv · iv · V7
Aching and slow to resolve, built on a turn that tonicizes iv with its own dominant, open ended, built to loop straight back round
Sad chord progressions for guitar
Minor-led, slow to resolve. These progressions sound aching and slow to resolve, usually sit in A minor, D minor, E minor and G minor and suit a tempo of around 66 BPM. Every chord has a guitar diagram for standard EADGBE tuning.
Generate a new sad progression
4 sad chord progressions to play now
Sad progression 2 in D minor
Dm · B♭ · A7 · B♭
i · VI · V7 · VI
Aching and slow to resolve, a deceptive turn away from home
Sad progression 3 in E minor
C · Am · B7 · C
VI · iv · V7 · VI
Aching and slow to resolve, a deceptive turn away from home
Sad progression 4 in G minor
Gm · E♭ · Gm · E♭
i · VI · i · VI
Aching and slow to resolve, built on a two chord i VI shuttle, open ended, built to loop straight back round
A strum pattern for sad songs
One bar of eighth notes. Down arrows are downstrokes, up arrows upstrokes, dots are misses: keep your hand moving through them.
↓ · ↓ · ↓ · · ·
1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &
How to use these progressions
Play each chord for the length shown, repeat the loop, and hum or sing over it until a melody turns up. The Roman numerals under each progression name the chords by their place in the key, so the same pattern works in any key: open it in the generator and change the key to suit your voice. Chord progressions are not covered by copyright, so anything you write over them is yours.
Same mood on ukulele
Sad chord progressions for ukulele
More moods for guitar
- HappyBright major motion, front-porch energy
- RomanticWarm, tender, close-slow-dance
- EnergeticForward motion, driving strum
- ChillLaid-back, hammock-and-porch
- MysteriousModal shadows, minor sevenths
- NostalgicOld-time, folk-song familiarity
- DreamyFloating, soft-edged, unresolved
- TriumphantBroad, major, arms-in-the-air
- TenseCoiled, chromatic, refuses to settle
- PlayfulBouncy, skipping, a bit cheeky