The E minor chord is one of the most popular chords across many different genres. The open Em chord is one of the first chords most guitarists learn. Unlike other basic open chords, the Em chord uses all of the open strings, which makes it a good test chord for practising stunning patterns.
The open Em chord also contains 4 open strings, so it is arguably the most ‘open’ chord of all of the basic guitar chords. As well as this, the lowest possible note on the guitar (with standard tuning) is the low E, played as the open 6th string. This can give the impression of Em (or E) being a sort of ‘home’ chord.
The open Em chord also fits well with other open chords, such as G, Am, C and F. Many songs have been written using these few chords.
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The standard way to play the E minor chord is in the open position, as shown below. This shape itself is probably in the top five most commonly played guitar chords. The chord diagram below uses the second and third fingers to play the two fingered notes. Some guitarists prefer to use the first two fingers instead. Both ways are correct, and usually comes down to personal preference and the context in which it is being used.
The ‘easy’ or ‘mini’ version of the E minor chord is perhaps the easiest guitar chord of all time? Why? Because it is literally the first three strings, played open, without any fingered notes.
The instructions above are step by step instructions for playing the common E minor chord shape. Forming the chord through step by step instructions is a great way of ensuring that you are interpreting the chord diagram correctly.
E Minor Triad Guitar Chord
The Em chord can be played as a barre chord by playing a root 6 barre chord shape and starting on the 12th fret or by playing a root 5 barre chord Major shape and starting on the 7th fret:
Playing triads is a great way of exploring the minor chord and the guitar fretboard more generally. By arranging the notes of the chord systematically using permutations (root position, first inversion, second inversion), interesting and unique shapes and voicings are created. The three different voicings for the E minor triad are:
The following shapes are alternative ways of playing the E minor chord shape. They’re not the most common Em shapes, but used enough to include here as interesting alternatives.
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Most E minor chords with extensions can be used as a substitute for the E minor chord. For example, Em9, Em11 and Em6 can often be used to add colour and emotion to the E minor chord.
For more interesting substitutions, playing variations of the G chord (which is the relative Major of E minor), such as G6, G69, Gmaj9 etc. can be used effectively as a substitute for the E minor chord.
The most common and effective scales that can be used to solo/improvise over the E minor chord, or to create melodies for the purposes of song writing are:In our new-look Chord Clinic column, we’re going to explore the interesting variations on classic chords that can add some variety and interest to your playing and songwriting.
How To Play The E Minor Chord (positioning, Variations, And Exercises)
E minor is one of the easiest chords you can play on the . It only requires two fingers and, being the lowest pitch minor chord you can play in standard tuning, has considerable heft. Like all minor chords it needs just three notes, the root, third and fifth, which are E, G and B. The note G is three frets higher than E, making it a minor third and giving the chord its minor flavour. For comparison, G♯ is the major third and would make a major chord if added to E and B.
Chords like this are known as open-string chords as they contain a mix of open strings and fretted notes. In this open string version of E minor some notes are repeated – B occurs twice and E three times.
A chord which you can play with only two fingers means you have a few spare fingers to add other interesting notes. Here we’ve added C♯, the major 6, to create an edgy-sounding E minor 6th chord.
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Adding the note D to the basic chord gives us E minor 7. Try combining it with figures one and two to add movement while broadly staying in E minor.
The added note trick works well on the top string too. Here we have added F♯, which is the ninth note up the E minor scale and gives us a chord of E minor add nine. Have a listen to Paul Weller’s
Here we’ve added the note G on the top string which works well combined with Figure 4. It doesn’t change the name of the chord as G is in the chord already – it’s just another voicing of E minor.
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Anywhere you play the notes E, G and B together it’s an E minor chord. If E is the lowest note the chord is in root position. Three note chords played higher up the neck are great for choppy or funky rhythm parts.
Here we have a first inversion E minor chord, because G, which is the third, is the lowest note. Try combining it with Figure 6 for some funky strumming. We use a forward slash followed by the bass note when the chord is not in root position.
This time we have a second inversion – the 5th of the chord, B is in the bass, so it’s another slash chord. Try finger picking figures 6, 7 and 8 while picking the open low E string with your thumb.
Chord Clinic: Learn To Play 10 Interesting E Minor Chord Variations
Here we have a different first inversion shape, this time on the 4th, 3rd and 2nd strings. See if you can work out root position and second inversions on the same three strings. You can also let the first string ring open against these inversions for added jangle.
Finally – drum roll please – the easiest chord on the , but for finger pickers only. The open strings make a root position E minor with no fret hand fingers needed. Your picking hand thumb plays the open E bass note and the index, middle and ring fingers take care of the top 3 strings, one finger each. Try some arpeggios and mix in some C, G and D chords, and your four-chord song is on its way.
Rod Fogg is a London-based ist, teacher and writer. He is the author of The Ultimate Course (Race Point 2014), the Electric Handbook (Backbeat, 2009) and contributed to bestseller The Totally Interactive Bible (Jawbone Publishing, 2006).
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