Dm9 Chord on Guitar

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

Dm9 is a minor ninth chord made of 5 notes: D, F, A, C, E. It sounds lush and smooth, and you hear it in neo-soul, R&B and jazz ballads. It is the i chord of D minor and turns up in 5 other keys.

The library above opens on Dm9 with 13 shapes up and down the neck. Tap a shape to hear it, or play it one string at a time.

Notes in Dm9

Note	Degree	Interval from D	Semitones
D	1	root	0
F	♭3	minor third	3
A	5	perfect fifth	7
C	♭7	minor seventh	10
E	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.

How to play Dm9

Fret 3Easyx53555

Fret 5Beginnerx50560

Fret 8Easy(10)8(10)9xx

Fret 7Medium(10)7(10)(10)(10)8

E-shape barre at fret 10Medium(10)(12)(10)(10)(10)(12)

Fret 10Medium(10)x(10)(10)(10)(12)

Fret 3 (root on the 5th string), step by step

1st finger (index): 4th string, 3rd fret (F, the minor third).
2nd finger (middle): 5th string, 5th fret (D, the root).
3rd finger (ring): across the 3rd string and 2nd string and 1st string at the 5th fret (C, E, A).
Strum from the 5th string, and keep the 6th string quiet.

Tips

The fret 3 shape is the one to learn first. Once it is easy, try the shape at the 5th fret (x50560): the same chord, higher and brighter, handy when the chords before and after it sit up the neck.

Keys and progressions with Dm9

Dm9 belongs to 6 keys: ii in C major, vi in F major, iii in B♭ major, i in D minor, v in G minor, iv in A minor. In D minor, try i–VI–III–VII: Dm9 – B♭ – F – C.