Guitar Lesson: A Guide for Beginners - Minor Chords
 Cart Cart| My Account | Help | About Us 
Questions? Visit our Help Desk
Free Shipping on most orders over $199
Search Products

in
On-Line Guitar Lessons : Basic Minor Chords (Am,Em,Dm)
Related Items

Favorite Songs With 3 Chords
$8.95

The Complete Book Of Chords, Scales, Arpeggios For The Guitar
$8.95

A Guide for Beginners - Minor Chords

by Christopher Sung

Pages: 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5

The E Minor Chord
The fingering for an E Minor is shown below:

Thus, the chart for the E Minor chord above tells us the following:

  • 1st String - Play it open
  • 2nd String - Play it open
  • 3rd String - Play it open
  • 4th String - Put your ring finger on the 2nd fret
  • 5th String - Put your middle finger on the 2nd fret
  • 6th String - Play it open
So try it out. Put your fingers in place and strum it. It's OK if some notes don't ring. That's natural. Note that if another fingering feels better, then by all means go with that. This is the first minor chord we've learned in which we get to play all 6 strings, so you don't have to be precise in your strumming.

You should also notice that it's a little easier to play than the E Major chord. If you recall how an E Major chord is played, note that the only difference between these two chords is that the note played on the 3rd string for an E Minor is one fret lower than that for an E Major. Since this note for an E Major is the 1st fret, then for an E Minor, this note is the open 3rd string. If you play an E Minor, and then add you first (index) finger to the 1st fret on the 3rd string, you'll see that you now have an E Major. Recognizing how chords relate to each other, especially ones with the same root note (in this case, 'E') is very important. You might want to alternate playing an E Major and then an E Minor so you can really hear the difference between the two, as well as understanding how simple it is to change between these two chords.

Try playing the music example below, set your loop count to "Forever" in your preferences at the bottom of the page, hit the play button, wait for the music to start, and try to play along with the example. It'll help you become more comfortable with the chord.


Play the Musical Example Below

Pages: 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5

Related Guitar Lessons


 
Get Our Newsletter
Our latest products & specials:
Music Articles
Best Sellers
Guitar Transcription Books
  1. Dave Matthews Band - Just the Riffs
    $10.95
  2. Beatles - Complete Scores
    $79.95
  3. The Best Of James Taylor
    $16.95
  4. Hendrix Guitar Style - w/CD
    $24.95
Guitar Instruction Books
  1. 101 Cool Blues Licks w/CD
    $17.95
  2. Play Guitar with Metallica
    $15.95
  3. Brian Setzer - Legendary Licks
    $19.95
  4. Blues You Can Use
    $19.95
Guitar Gear
  1. Squier® Mini Electric Guitar - Black
    $99.00
  2. Darling Divas 3/4-size Children's Acoustic Guitar Starter Pack
    $65.00
  3. Behringer Metalien Electric Guitar Starter Kit
    $149.00
  4. Luna Faerie Children's Mini-Acoustic Guitar
    $69.00
Guitar Videos & DVDs
  1. Best of Stevie Ray Vaughan
    $19.95
  2. 50 Licks Blues Style
    $14.95
  3. Guitar Method Book/CD/DVD Pack
    $24.95
  4. Blues Rock Guitar Soloing (DVD)
    $14.95
Guitar Software
  1. Music Made Easy: Guitar CD-Rom (Win/Mac)
    $19.95
  2. Blues Guitar Legends CD-ROM
    $26.99
  3. Digital Music Mentor Guitar Notation Software
    $49.99
  4. SlowGold - Slow down any tune
    $49.95
On-Line Lessons
Guitar Lessons
The Jimi Hendrix Style
Cool Rock Chordal Ideas
Paganini's Caprice #5
Blackbird Fingerpicking
Home · Brands A-Z · Guitar · Bass · Drums · Folk · Keyboards · Recording & Pro Audio · Software · DJ Equipment · Artists A-Z · Sheet Music · Music Instruction · Videos · Band & Orchestra · Lighting · Theater · Live Sound · World · Gifts
Shopping Cart · My Account · Help Desk · Site Map · About Us · How to Order · Safe Shopping · Testimonials · Privacy Statement · Terms of Use

Product/stock inquiries or questions about existing orders: ActiveMusician Help Desk, or email us at orders@activemusician.com or call us at 1-201-530-9599, 9:30AM-5:30PM EST
Phone Orders: 1-800-923-8166 toll-free, 24/7. Orders only. US customers only.

© 2000-2008 ActiveMusician.com. All Rights Reserved.