Sezen Aksu - Ah İstanbul - Chord

Key Bb major – G minor Chords Gm, Cm, Dm, Eb, D Easy key C

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Capo 0

Gm                        Eb       Cm
Uzanıp Kanlıca'nın orta yerinde bir taşa
          D                Gm
Gözümün yaşını yüzdürürüm hisara doğru
Gm                           Eb      Cm
Yapacak hiç bir şey yok gitmek istedi gitti
          D                 Gm
Hem anlıyorum hem çok acı tek taraflı bitti

Gm                        Dm
Bi lodos lazım şimdi bana bi kürek bi kayık 
Cm                       Dm
Zulada birkaç şişe yakut yer gök kırmızı
Gm                           Dm
Söverim gelmişine geçmişine ayıpsa ayıp
Cm                       Dm
Düşer üstüme akşamdan kalma sabah yıldızı            

        Gm          
Ah İstanbul İstanbul olalı     
      Dm                  
Hiç görmedi böyle keder        
       Eb        Cm              
Geberiyorum aşkından           
         Dm      Cm      Dm
Kalmadı bende gururdan eser    

Gm                               Eb    Cm
Ne acı ne acı insan insan kendine ne kadar yenik
              D                  Gm
Bulunmadı ihanetin ilacı yürek koca bi kara delik
Gm                      Eb     Cm
Yapacak hiç bişey yok gönül bu sevdi
               D                  Gm
Yeni bir ten yeni bir heyecan bilirim üstelik

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Sezen Aksu - Ah İstanbul Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Sezen Aksu – Ah İstanbul: key and chord analysis

The song opens on Gm and ends on Gm. Its chords belong to both Bb major and Gm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

Bb major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = A (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = Eb (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

G minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Eb (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = F (natural-minor colour)
#7 = F# (harmonic-minor leading tone from the V chord)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the G minor side because it both starts and finishes on Gm, Gm is heard 11 times while Bb never appears and the major V chord points straight at Gm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from Bb major, and switching between the two views is exactly where the practice value lies.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to Bb or to Gm; comparing both readings is a practice of its own.

Every chord of the key, listed 1 to 7 separately for each key. Chords played in the song show how often they appear; chords from outside the scale sit next to their own degree.

Seen from Bb major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	Bb	Tonic — home	Bb · D · F	—
ii	Cm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C · Eb · G	8×
iii	Dm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	D · F · A	7×
V/vi	D	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Gmsecondary dominant	D · F# · A	4×
IV	Eb	Subdominant — moves away from home	Eb · G · Bb	5×
V	F	Dominant — strongest pull home	F · A · C	—
vi	Gm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	G · Bb · D	11×
vii°	Adim	Leading-tone chord — tension	A · C · Eb	—

Seen from G minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Gm	Tonic — home	G · Bb · D	11×
ii°	Adim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	A · C · Eb	—
III	Bb	Relative major — the bright side	Bb · D · F	—
iv	Cm	Subdominant — moves away from home	C · Eb · G	8×
v	Dm	Minor dominant — soft pull	D · F · A	7×
V	D	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	D · F# · A	4×
VI	Eb	Submediant — warm colour	Eb · G · Bb	5×
VII	F	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	F · A · C	—

Analysis

The key pair is Bb major and its relative G minor (2 flats). 5 different chords appear 35 times in total; 4 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Gm brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from Bb, the same D is V/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Gm.

Chord movement

D Gm BbV/vi → vi GmV → iharmonic-minor cadence ×4
Cm D Bbii → V/vi Gmiv → Viv → V ×4
Dm Gm Bbiii → vi Gmv → inatural-minor cadence ×3

The move to watch is D → Gm, heard 4 times. From the Gm side it is V → i (harmonic-minor cadence: the major V resolves dramatically); from the Bb side it reads V/vi → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

Bb major pentatonic and G minor pentatonic are the same five notes (Bb – C – D – F – G): start from Bb for a brighter phrase, from G for a bluesier one.
Over Gm, land on G, Bb, D — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Cm, land on C, Eb, G — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Dm, land on D, F, A — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
When D comes, swap the scale's F for F#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.

The song on the circle of fifths

Played in the song — chord of the key
Played — the minor's harmonic V or a secondary dominant
Played — borrowed or outside chord
Home region: IV–I–V and ii–vi–iii

Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.

Capo and easier keys

With Bb major shapes

Capo 1 + A shapes
Capo 3 + G shapes
Capo 6 + E shapes

With G minor shapes

Capo 3 + Em shapes
Capo 5 + Dm shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

2 semitones up
3 semitones down · capo 3 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The opening Gm lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The chords that keep coming back are Gm, Cm, Dm, Eb; read them as vi–ii–iii–IV in Bb or i–iv–v–VI in Gm. D is the interesting twist: in Bb it is a chromatic chord (V/vi), while in Gm it becomes the dominant (V) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on D → Gm (V/vi → vi in Bb, V → i in Gm): harmonic-minor cadence — the major V resolves dramatically. Ending on Gm, the song seals Gm as home.

This analysis is generated from the song's chords by akorculuk's harmony engine using consistent rules. When you change key, the degrees stay the same; only the chord names change.