The C minor guitar chord is one of those awkward chord shapes… My students hate it! In its standard form it’s very difficult to play, but there are some good easy alternatives.
In this free lesson you will learn:
The standard way to play the C minor guitar chord
4 easier ways to play the Cm guitar chord
A super-simple version of the C minor guitar chord for beginners
The standard way to play the C minor guitar chord
So why is the Cm guitar chord so difficult to play? Well, in its standard form it’s usually played as a “barre chord”. It looks like this:
(If you don't understand the above image please read our article "How To Read Guitar Chordboxes In 60 Seconds". It will make everything clear!)
As you can see, this is far too difficult for guitar beginners to play. We need an easier option. So what are the alternative versions of the C minor guitar chord?
An easier version of the Cm guitar chord
This version of the C minor guitar chord is easier to play than the barred version:
This is a much better option that the standard Cm, but it’s still not EASY to play, so I prefer to recommendthe following version of the C minor guitar chord to my students:
This is a great chord shape to learn as it crops up often in the future. It’s not super-easy to play, but it IS a lot simpler than the standard version of the Cm guitar chord. This is my preferred version of Cm for my beginner students to learn.
There’s two other versions of the Cm guitar chord that I’d like you to bear in mind. Especially if you’re a beginner guitarist…
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A 2-finger version of the C minor guitar chord
This version of the Cm guitar chord is a handy one to know:
This Cm guitar chord is much easier to fret, but remember that you must only play strings 2, 3 and 4. Strings 1, 5 and 6 must not be played. (String numbers are explained here.)
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The easiest-of-all version of the C minor guitar chord
This version of the Cm guitar chord is a little bass-heavy, but it’s very easy to make the chord shape and less fiddly to strum than the above version. Check it out!
As you can see, this is much easier than any of the other versions of the C minor guitar chord we’ve looked at.
Take care not to strum strings 1 & 2 though, or this won’t sound anything like a C minor guitar chord any more! (Strumming strings 1 & 2 would turn this into a different chord.)
Guitars have been around for a long time, but in all that time I don’t think anyone has found an easier way to play the Cm guitar chord than this! 🙂
The Best Easy Versions Of This Chord
My recommendation for your Cm guitar chords
I think you should try all of the above Cm shapes and see which one fits your current ability level AND the song you are trying to play. Some chords are well suited to specific situations and what sounds good in one context will often sound out-of-place in another.
If you’re a total beginner you should try the last two above versions of the Cm guitar chord, as all the other versions will simply be too tough for you to play. But if you have 15-20 hours of guitar practice under your belt already, I prefer for my students to learn the third version of the Cm guitar chord shown above. (Because that shape can be used for multiple other chords in the future.)
Here are some other cool-sounding Cm chords .
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To play Cm in its standard form, start by placing your index finger on the 3rd fret, covering your high E, B, G, D and A, but barring the A (5th string) and high e (1st string). Then place your middle finger on the 4th fret's B string. Finally, add your ring finger on the 5th fret's G and pinky on D.
Four of the most common open chords, in the most common guitar key of G major are the chords G, C, D and E minor. With these chords you will be able to play a number of easy guitar songs. G and C can be played with 1 finger.
Playing an E chord is one of the easiest to learn at first, partly because you don't have to worry about strumming strings that aren't part of the chord. Instead, you get to play all of them. As with all of the chords that we will look at, always make sure that your form is correct.
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“SATB” voice leading refers to four-part chords scored for soprano (S), alto (A), tenor (T), and bass (B) voices. Three-part chords are often specified as SAB (soprano, alto, bass) but could be scored for any combination of the three voice types.
The perfect fourth is a perfect interval like the unison, octave, and perfect fifth, and it is a sensory consonance. In common practice harmony, however, it is considered a stylistic dissonance in certain contexts, namely in two-voice textures and whenever it occurs "above the bass in chords with three or more notes".
For those feel-good vibes that get toes tapping, the I-IV-vi-V progression is your ticket to happy town. It's a magical formula used in some of the most heartwarming hits and is a favorite for songwriters aiming for an upbeat chord progression that never fails to lift spirits.
C major. This is arguably the most common chord of all time. This is the C major chord, or the C chord. It consists of the C, E and G notes from the C major scale.
C-sharp minor's distinctive sound and emotive potential make it a valuable key for composers and musicians, allowing for the exploration of deep emotional landscapes and the creation of music with a profound impact.
For example, a full-size guitar is, on average, 38 inches (96.5cm) long. The second but far more accurate way to determine which guitar size you've got is by measuring scale length. Scale length = measuring the nut to the 12th fret, then double by 2.
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