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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

• Sound Problems?

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