Celine Dion - The Prayer - Chord

Key Bb major – G minor Chords F, Bb, Eb, Dm, C, Gm, Db, Bbm … Easy key C

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Capo 0

Bb  F  Dm  Db  Bbm  F

                     Bb   C                      F
I pray you'll be our eyes, and watch us where we go.
                  Bb    C                       Eb    F
And help us to be wise   in times when we don't know
                Gm      C                  A7
Let this be our prayer,   when we lose our way
Dm              Bb     Dm                Am
Lead us to the place, guide us with your grace
Bb              F      C      Bb  F
To a place where we'll be safe

               Bb                          C
La luce che tu hai (I pray we'll find your light
               F                      F/Eb
nel cuore resterà (and hold it in our hearts
             Bb                          C
a ricordarci che (When stars go out each night
              Eb   F
eterna stella sei
          Gm                         
Nella mia preghiera (Let this be our 
C
prayer)
            A7
quanta fede c'è (when shadows fill our day)
Dm              Bb     Dm             Am
Lead us to a place, guide us with your grace
Bb               F     C  Bb    F
Give us faith so we'll be safe

          Bb                 F
Sognia un mondo senza più violenza
         Bb                   F
un mondo di giustizia e di speranza
       Bb                   F
Ognuno dia la mano al suo vicino
Dm         Db  Bbm            F
Simbolo di pace, di fraternità

                Eb                      F 
La forza che ci dà (We ask that life be kind

               Bb                      Bb/D
è il desiderio che (and watch us from above
               Eb                          F
ognuno trovi amore (We hope each soul will find

                 Ab                  Bb
intorno e dentro sé (another soul to love)

                Cm                      F
Let this be our prayer (Let this be our prayer
                D7
just like every child (just like every child
Gm              Eb     Gm             Dm
Need to find a place, guide us with your grace
Eb               F7       Eb
Give us faith so we'll be safe

Gm        Eb
È la fede che
Gm            Dm
hai acceso in noi,
Eb           F    Gb  Ab Bb
sento che ci salverà

End of song Play again?

Celine Dion - The Prayer Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Celine Dion – The Prayer: key and chord analysis

The song opens on Bb and ends on Bb. 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 Bb major side because it both starts and finishes on Bb, Bb is heard 18 times against 6 for Gm and the major V chord points straight at Gm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from G minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

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	17×
I	Bb/D	Tonic — home	Bb · D · F	1×
i	Bbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Bb · Db · F	2×
ii	Cm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C · Eb · G	1×
V/V	C	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Fsecondary dominant	C · E · G	8×
bIII	Db	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	Db · F · Ab	2×
iii	Dm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	D · F · A	8×
V7/vi	D7	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Gmsecondary dominant	D · F# · A · C	1×
IV	Eb	Subdominant — moves away from home	Eb · G · Bb	9×
V	F	Dominant — strongest pull home	F · A · C	18×
V	F/Eb	Dominant — strongest pull home	F · A · C	1×
V7	F7	Dominant — strongest pull home	F · A · C · Eb	1×
bVI	Gb	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	Gb · Bb · Db	1×
vi	Gm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	G · Bb · D	6×
bVII	Ab	bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord	Ab · C · Eb	2×
vii°	Adim	Leading-tone chord — tension	A · C · Eb	—
V7/iii	A7	Secondary dominant V/iii — leads to Dmsecondary dominant	A · C# · E · G	2×
vii	Am	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C · E	2×

Seen from G minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Gm	Tonic — home	G · Bb · D	6×
bII	Ab	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	Ab · C · Eb	2×
ii°	Adim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	A · C · Eb	—
V7/v	A7	Secondary dominant V/v — leads to Dmsecondary dominant	A · C# · E · G	2×
ii	Am	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C · E	2×
III	Bb	Relative major — the bright side	Bb · D · F	17×
III	Bb/D	Relative major — the bright side	Bb · D · F	1×
iii	Bbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Bb · Db · F	2×
iv	Cm	Subdominant — moves away from home	C · Eb · G	1×
IV	C	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	C · E · G	8×
#IV	Db	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Db · F · Ab	2×
v	Dm	Minor dominant — soft pull	D · F · A	8×
V7	D7	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	D · F# · A · C	1×
VI	Eb	Submediant — warm colour	Eb · G · Bb	9×
VII	F	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	F · A · C	18×
VII	F/Eb	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	F · A · C	1×
VII7	F7	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	F · A · C · Eb	1×
#VII	Gb	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · Bb · Db	1×

Analysis

The key pair is Bb major and its relative G minor (2 flats). 17 different chords appear 82 times in total; 9 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 D7 is V7/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Gm. C, A7 act as secondary dominants, briefly pointing at another chord of the key. Db, Ab, Gb are borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

F Bb BbV → Iauthentic cadence GmVII → III ×7
Eb F BbIV → VIV → V GmVI → VIIVI → VII ×5
Eb Gm BbIV → vi GmVI → iVI → i ×3
F Gm BbV → videceptive cadence GmVII → iAeolian arrival ×2
A7 Dm BbV7/iii → iiisecondary resolution GmV7/v → v ×2
Ab Bb BbbVII → IbVII → I GmbII → III ×2

The move to watch is F → Bb, heard 7 times. From the Bb side it reads V → I (authentic cadence: the strongest arrival home); from the Gm side it is VII → III. 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 F, land on F, A, C — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Bb, land on Bb, D, F — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Eb, land on Eb, G, Bb — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
When D7 comes, swap the scale's F for F#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.
On Db, follow the chord's notes (Db · F · Ab) rather than the key's scale — it's a borrowed colour.

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

Starting on Bb, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. The backbone is F, Bb, Eb, Dm — V–I–IV–iii from the Bb side, VII–III–VI–v from the Gm side. A7 is the interesting twist: in Bb it is a chromatic chord (V7/iii), while in Gm it becomes the dominant (V7/v) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on F → Bb (V → I in Bb, VII → III in Gm): authentic cadence — the strongest arrival home. The final chord is Bb; the ear comes to rest in Bb.

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.