Chord & FretSamba · ciclo de quintas — Electric guitar
What is the Samba · ciclo de quintas progression?
The Samba · ciclo de quintas progression is Gm → Cm → F → A# (vi – ii – V – I), in the key of Bb. Read as harmonic function it moves tonic → subdominant → dominant → tonic, arriving home on a cadence. Play one chord per bar and let it loop.
Good music works like a good walk: you leave, get a little lost on purpose, and come back. The map of this one: Gm (vi, home) → Cm (ii, the stroll) → F (V, time to come back) → A# (I, home). Press play and follow along — at the "time to come back" chord, notice the physical urge to hear A# again — the home chord.
Electric guitar
The amplified tone holds each chord for a long time, so a few well-chosen notes keep ringing on their own while you leave room for the rest of the group. The electric guitar is not the traditional voice of samba or choro, but it fits MPB and modern arrangements well, adding smooth chords and quiet fills beside the core rhythm instruments. Its home chord A# keeps its lowest note on A#.
Cadences — Harmony comes to rest here — hear every cadence type and train your ear · see it in Chord & Fret
Save this progression in Chord & FretReharmonize — Want richer substitutions? Reharmonize the progression in a tap · try it in Chord & Fret
Learn each chord of the trip
This is one shape of A#. In Chord & Fret, you open every position of all 4 chords in this progression along the neck — on any instrument, and hear each one. Open in Chord & Fret →
Metronome — Drill this change in time, with tap tempo and subdivisions · open in Chord & Fret
Want to change keys without redoing any of this? In the Chord & Fret app you drag and the whole neck rewrites itself — it's on the app stores.