C♯m9 / D♭m9 Chord on Guitar

1,008 guitar chords with several shapes each, finger numbers, difficulty and real sound, in any tuning.

C♯m9 (also written D♭m9) is a minor ninth chord made of 5 notes: C♯, E, G♯, B, D♯. It sounds lush and smooth, and you hear it in neo-soul, R&B and jazz ballads. It is the i chord of C♯ minor and turns up in 5 other keys.

The library above opens on C♯m9 with 13 shapes up and down the neck. Tap a shape to hear it, or play it one string at a time.

Notes in C♯m9

Note	Degree	Interval from C♯	Semitones
C♯	1	root	0
E	♭3	minor third	3
G♯	5	perfect fifth	7
B	♭7	minor seventh	10
D♯	9	major ninth	14

Formula: 1 – ♭3 – 5 – ♭7 – 9. On guitar the 5th is often left out of the bigger shapes without changing the chord. With the other spelling, D♭m9 is D♭, F♭, A♭, C♭, E♭: the same sounds under different names.

How to play C♯m9

Open positionEasyx41100

Fret 2Easyx42444

Open positionEasyx4x440

Fret 7Easy9798xx

Fret 6Medium969997

E-shape barre at fret 9Medium9(11)999(11)

Open position (root on the 5th string), step by step

1st finger (index): 4th string, 1st fret (D♯, the ninth).
2nd finger (middle): 3rd string, 1st fret (G♯, the fifth).
3rd finger (ring): 5th string, 4th fret (C♯, the root).
Let the 2nd string, 1st string ring open (B, E).
Strum from the 5th string, and keep the 6th string quiet.

Tips

The open position shape is the one to learn first. Once it is easy, try the shape at the 7th fret (9798xx): the same chord, higher and brighter, handy when the chords before and after it sit up the neck.

Keys and progressions with C♯m9

C♯m9 belongs to 6 keys: vi in E major, iii in A major, ii in B major, i in C♯ minor, v in F♯ minor, iv in G♯ minor. In C♯ minor, try i–VI–III–VII: C♯m9 – A – E – B.