How to play the Bm chord in all CAGED shapes
This is the final video in the guitar chords series. Here we are looking at the Bm chord.
As you know by now, we build all our guitar chords by using one of the open-position chords C, A, G, E, or D, which spells CAGED.
This can be done in major or minor. If we want a Bm chord, we simply look for what is the lowest possible chord shape we can use and then spell out CAGED from there.
In the case of Bm, we have an Am shape as our lowest starting point.
Next, we have a Gm shape, a bit tricky, but we need to attempt playing it because we want to visualize the chord shape so we can build other chords, arpeggios, and modes around it.
Next, the Em shape. This is much easier.
Here’s the Dm shape.
Finally, the Cm shape. This one can only be played in fractions so strings 2-4, or strings 3-5.
All these can’t be fretted in their full glory, especially the Cm shape.
We can play it in smaller fractions or, turn them into min7 chords, now the lowest possible chord shape is the Cm shape.
Once you’ve got your head around this CAGED system concept, your job is to learn all these shapes.
There are two ways to do this and you must do both.
- Practice exercises, I have loads of them in the chords course of the SEPR.
- You have to play songs that have Bm chords in them.
Here are a few examples of songs you can learn that use a Bm chord. Hey There Delilah by Plain White T’s, Robbie Williams Angels, Over The Rainbow (Eva Cassidy version), and Roxanne by The Police.
Guitar chords summary
As you’ve seen in this 15-part video series, playing guitar chords is not about learning thousands of chords, it’s about fully understanding how to build chords using the intervals around the five CAGED shapes.
Extending the chords is the same process, you just need to identify the intervals around each shape and understand what intervals go in a chord and you can do it.
The Bm Chord | Related Pages
Guitar chords
You can learn how to build all minor and major guitar chords using the so-called CAGED system.
This is the foundation upon which we learn to extend chords and build arpeggios and modes as well.
The B chord
The B chord is not part of the CAGED open-position chords, but there’s a very important reason for it being here.
In the video lesson, we go through it using all CAGED shapes. Understand this and you can build all major guitar chords.
Intermediate Acoustic
Most intermediate acoustic tunes can’t be played using just basic open-position chords. We have to move up the fretboard and play CAGED barre chords as well.
We incorporate bass lines, add licks, extend chords, and play vocal melodies. Most importantly, we’ll invent second guitar parts and play these songs together.
About me | Dan Lundholm
This was a guitar lesson about the Bm chord in all CAGED shapes, by Dan Lundholm. Discover more about him and learn guitar with Spytunes.
Most importantly, find out why you should learn guitar through playing tunes, not practising scales, and studying theory in isolation.
