Minor 9th Chords... (m9)

Compound Interval

A minor 9th chord is a musical interval spanning an octave plus 1 semitone - 13 semitones in total. It can be written as m9 or -9, with m9 the most commonly used. It can also be described as a minor 7th with an added 9th.

A minor 9th chord is a chord having a root, a minor third, a perfect fifth, a minor 7th and a major 9th. It is considered a compound interval as it spans more than an octave.

The chord formula for a minor 9th chord is 1 - ♭3 - 5 - ♭7 - 9

Example - Calculating Gm9 (G-9)

m9 Chords consist of the 1st,♭3rd, 5th ♭7th and 9th notes of the Major Scale
'G' chords, are based on the scale of G major which has 1 sharp (F#). The scale reads as follows: G - A - B - C - D - E - F# - G
As we are looking at a 9th chord, we have to extend the scale for an extra tone (2 semitones) The scale reads as follows: G - A - B - C - D - E - F# - G - A
Formula: 1 - ♭3 - 5 - ♭7- 9
Substitute the notes of the scale into the formula: 1=G / ♭3=♭B / 5=D / ♭7=F / 9=A
Gm9 reads as follows: G - B♭- D - F - A

Minor 9th Chord Table

Chord (m9)	A	A#	B♭	B	C	C#	D♭	D	D#	E♭	E	F	F#	G♭	G	G#	A♭
Root	A	A#	B♭	B	C	C#	D♭	D	D#	E♭	E	F	F#	G♭	G	G#	A♭
Minor 3rd	C	C#	D♭	D	E♭	E	F♭(E)	F	F#	G♭	G	A♭	A	B♭♭(A)	B♭	B	C♭(B)
Perfect 5th	E	E#(F)	F	F#	G	G#	A♭	A	A#	B♭	B	C	C#	D♭	D	D#	E♭
Minor 7th	G	G#	A♭	A	B♭	B	C♭(B)	C	C#	D♭	D	E♭	E	F♭(E)	F	F#	G♭
Major 9th	B	B#(C)	C	C#	D	D#	E♭	E	E#(F)	F	F#	G	G#	A♭	A	A#	B♭

Chart Legend:

Chord Charts:

Am9 - Cm9

Free Download: Minor 9th Chords - Part 1

C#m9 / Dbm9 - Em9

Free Download: Minor 9 Chords - Part 2

Fm9 - G#m9 / Abm9

Free Download: Minor 9 Chords - Part 3

There are a variety of options available when playing these chords. Within each chord position where you have several blue circles with the same fingering on the same fret, you can play this as a barre with the first finger, or you can choose to play some of them which can be useful if you are just picking a few notes. If you do omit some of the blue dots on these particular frets, make sure you avoid playing the strings, as they are not within the chord structure.