Gm, the G minor in E-shape guitar chord

This is the same G minor you play as an open chord, built a second way: the minor grip of the E shape with the barre at the 3rd fret. Every string is fretted, so nothing rings open and the whole chord moves when your hand does. If F♯m is already under your fingers, slide the grip up one fret and you’re there; it gets a little easier too, since the strings press down more willingly the further the barre sits from the nut. Learning a chord you already know sounds like wasted work, but this shape is the one that travels: every fret up the neck is another minor chord with no new fingering to learn.

Gm
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How to play it

  • Index finger flattened across the low E string (6th), G string (3rd), B string (2nd) and high E string (1st), 3rd fret.
  • Ring finger on the A string (5th), 5th fret.
  • Pinky on the D string (4th), 5th fret.

Changes to practice

Holding Gm still is the easy part. Songs need you to arrive at it in rhythm, so in Strumhold you practice Gm as changes, alongside the rest of the E-shape Barres set: