How to Play the Bm chord on Guitar

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• The problem with the Bm chord
• How to play a B minor chord
• Moveable form: Bm barre chord
• The easiest Bm chord voicing
• Related lessons & courses

    This is a barre chord that requires you to fret 5 strings with the first finger. This makes the Bm chord a little tricky, but with a little patience, you can master it.

    Here are a few tips to help you master this tricky fingering faster:

• In the beginning, form the fingering shape slowly. Speed will come later.
• Decide on the order with which you will place your fingers. For example, you can always start with fingers 3-4, then 2, and then place the 1st finger to form the barre. You could also start with the barre instead.
• Be consistent with the decided order. After you build muscle memory, forming the chord will happen automatically and almost instantly. But the muscle memory building process will take a lot longer if you do this differently every time.
• Place your 1st finger very close to the metal fret. This makes it easier to execute without buzzing. But don't play completely over the fret wire because that will produce a muted sound.

    A note on "bar chords": The traditional spelling is "barre", but many times you will see it spelled as "bar". So a "Bm bar chord" and a "Bm barre chord" are actually the same thing. Don't let that throw you off 😉.

    The above Bm chord is already a moveable barre chord. But if you want a barre fingering that covers all 6 strings, try the option below:

    To use moveable chords effectively, you need to locate the notes on the fretboard really fast. I highly recommend that you get Fretboard Memorization Toolbox. It's a free mini-course that includes fun drills and musical challenges that will help you master the fretboard very quickly.

    Guitar players love shortcuts. A shortcut for quickly playing a B minor chord on the guitar, without the trouble of the barre, is to use the minimal voicing in the diagram below.

    This produces a thinner chord, but it still sounds great in many songs and it includes all the chord degrees. Plus it's extremely easy to play on the guitar! 

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