Ukulele · minor ninth
Am9 Chord on Ukulele
A Minor 9th is A, C, E, G, B — the 1-b3-5-b7-9 pattern of a minor ninth chord. Here is the shape, the audio, and what usually goes wrong.
Good news: Am9 has an open shape on ukulele, so you can play it without barring anything. Start there and work up the neck later.
Start here — Movable m9 Shape (2nd fret)
Open shape — open strings ring right through it and there is nothing to barre. If you only learn one, learn this one.
What beginners get wrong
Moving in and out of it
The shape above: Movable m9 Shape (2nd fret) — open position, so several strings ring unfretted — barred at fret 2.
Listening: each shape above has its own play button, and each one plays the notes that shape actually produces — not a generic triad.
Am9 on other instruments
Same notes, different hands. Every link below is a real page with diagrams and audio.
Chords next door
Same root, different colour — and all of them playable on ukulele.
Am9 on Ukulele — questions people ask
What is the easiest way to play Am9 on ukulele?
“Movable m9 Shape (2nd fret)” — which we rate advanced — is the easiest Am9 shape on ukulele. Open shape — open strings ring right through it and there is nothing to barre. If you only learn one, learn this one.
What notes are in the A Minor 9th chord?
A Minor 9th is A, C, E, G, B — the 1-b3-5-b7-9 interval pattern of a minor ninth chord. Every voicing on this page uses those notes and nothing else; they just appear in a different order and octave.
What can I play instead of Am9?
The nearest stand-ins on ukulele that keep the same root are Asus4, Asus2, A. They keep the root and the fifth and only change what sits in the middle, so most songs still work — but check the swap against the melody, because the note you removed may be the one the tune is singing.
Can I play Am9 on other instruments?
Yes. Am9 is the same set of notes everywhere; only the fingering changes. This site has diagrams and audio for it on guitar, piano.
Learn the theory behind Am9
The shape gets your fingers there. These explain why it sounds the way it does.
Functional Harmony: Three Roles, One Engine
What a seventh chord is for — tension, resolution, and the seat it takes in the key.
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The 12-Bar Blues — Three Chords, A Century of Hits
Seventh chords are the whole sound of the blues. Twelve bars is where to hear it.
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Major and Minor Scales — Built from Intervals, Felt in Songs
The flat third under all of this, and the scale it comes from.
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