Chord & FretCm on electric guitar
On the electric guitar a chord needs only a few clear notes — the amp sustains them and fills the space, so you mute the strings you are not playing and let the tone carry the rest. In this position the bass is C and the shape runs from fret 3 to 5. Plugged into an amp, each chord sustains for as long as you hold it, and the tone — clean or driven — shapes the whole sound.
Notes on C: C – Eb – GFormula: 1 – b3 – 5In the formula, the numbers count steps of the major scale starting from the note that names the chord; "b" lowers a half step, "#" raises one — and a slash names the bass note.
Where to use it: The home chord of sad songs, it is the minor tonic — in other words, the arrival point where the music comes to rest. Inside a major key it becomes the famous relative minor (Am within C major) or the step that prepares a chord of tension.
The shapes of Cm on electric guitar don't end on this page — the whole neck holds dozens. In Chord & Fret, you hear every shape strummed string by string, in the instrument's own voice; open every variation on the neck, grouped by bass note; and set a capo — the diagrams redraw above it. Start free. Unlock everything with Pro. 100% offline.
Unlock in Chord & Fret →Part of the Triads family.