Serdar Ortaç - Balım (Otilia) - Chord

Key E major – C# minor Chords Abm, Dbm, B, F#m, A Easy key C (capo 4)

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Capo 0

Abm                            Dbm
Kimse sana canım cicim balım demesin 
Abm                            Dbm
Kıskanırım seni başka biri sevmezsin 
                                F#m
Ben gülerim bırak hayat sana gülmesin 
         Dbm        B    F#m   Abm
Dudak benim başka kimse onu öpmesin

Dbm             B            A
Ne umutsuzluğun ne bu hayat oyunu 
Dbm                B           A
Kendin hazırladın yavaş yavaş sonunu 
   B             A           Abm
Ama bende kolay bitmez aşkın yine de 
B               A             Abm
Seviyorum aşkım yaşamayı seninle 

Abm                            Dbm
Kimse sana canım cicim balım demesin 
Abm                            Dbm
Kıskanırım seni başka biri sevmezsin 
                                 F#m
Ben gülerim bırak hayat sana gülmesin 
        Dbm         B    F#m   Abm
Dudak benim başka kimse onu öpmesin

End of song Play again?

Serdar Ortaç - Balım (Otilia) Tabs

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Harmony analysis

Serdar Ortaç – Balım (Otilia): key and chord analysis

The song opens on Abm and ends on Abm. Its chords belong to both E major and C#m, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

E major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

C# minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = A (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = B (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the C# minor side because C#m is heard 8 times while E never appears. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from E 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 E or to C#m; 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 E major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	E	Tonic — home	E · G# · B	—
ii	F#m	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	F# · A · C#	4×
iii	Abm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	Ab · Cb · Eb	8×
V/vi	G#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Dbmsecondary dominant	G# · B# · D#	—
IV	A	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C# · E	4×
V	B	Dominant — strongest pull home	B · D# · F#	6×
vi	Dbm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	Db · Fb · Ab	8×
vii°	D#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	D# · F# · A	—

Seen from C# minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Dbm	Tonic — home	Db · Fb · Ab	8×
ii°	D#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D# · F# · A	—
III	E	Relative major — the bright side	E · G# · B	—
iv	F#m	Subdominant — moves away from home	F# · A · C#	4×
v	Abm	Minor dominant — soft pull	Ab · Cb · Eb	8×
V	G#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	G# · B# · D#	—
VI	A	Submediant — warm colour	A · C# · E	4×
VII	B	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	B · D# · F#	6×

Analysis

The key pair is E major and its relative C# minor (4 sharps). 5 different chords appear 30 times in total; 5 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Everything stays inside one scale, which is why the song is easy to follow by ear.

Chord movement

Abm Dbm Eiii → vi C#mv → inatural-minor cadence ×5
F#m Dbm Eii → vi C#miv → iminor plagal ×2
A Dbm EIV → vi C#mVI → iVI → i ×1
A B EIV → VIV → V C#mVI → VIIVI → VII ×1

The move to watch is Abm → Dbm, heard 5 times. From the C#m side it is v → i (natural-minor cadence: gentle, modal arrival); from the E side it reads iii → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

E major pentatonic and C# minor pentatonic are the same five notes (E – F# – G# – B – C#): start from E for a brighter phrase, from C# for a bluesier one.
Over Abm, land on Ab, Cb, Eb — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Dbm, land on Db, Fb, Ab — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over B, land on B, D#, F# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.

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 E major shapes

No capo — open E shapes
Capo 2 + D shapes
Capo 4 + C shapes

With C# minor shapes

Capo 4 + Am shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

4 semitones down · capo 4 keeps the original pitch
3 semitones up

The song's harmonic story

The opening Abm lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The chords that keep coming back are Abm, Dbm, B, F#m; read them as iii–vi–V–ii in E or v–i–VII–iv in C#m. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on Abm → Dbm (iii → vi in E, v → i in C#m): natural-minor cadence — gentle, modal arrival. Ending on Abm, the song seals E 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.