G♯m9 / A♭m9 Chord on Guitar

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

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

The library above opens on G♯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 G♯m9

Note	Degree	Interval from G♯	Semitones
G♯	1	root	0
B	♭3	minor third	3
D♯	5	perfect fifth	7
F♯	♭7	minor seventh	10
A♯	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, A♭m9 is A♭, C♭, E♭, G♭, B♭: the same sounds under different names.

How to play G♯m9

Open positionEasy42430x

Fret 9Easyx(11)9(11)(11)(11)

Open positionMedium411102

Fret 1Medium414442

E-shape barre at fret 4Easy464406

Open positionMedium414x04

Fret 9 (root on the 5th string), step by step

1st finger (index): 4th string, 9th fret (B, the minor third).
2nd finger (middle): 5th string, 11th fret (G♯, the root).
3rd finger (ring): across the 3rd string and 2nd string and 1st string at the 11th fret (F♯, A♯, D♯).
Strum from the 5th string, and keep the 6th string quiet.

Tips

The fret 9 shape is the one to learn first. Once it is easy, try the shape at the 7th fret (x(11)8877): the same chord, higher and brighter, handy when the chords before and after it sit up the neck.

Keys and progressions with G♯m9

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