C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (2024)

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (1)

Sergio J. C.
3 de January de 2023

The C# minor 7th chord (C#m7) is built from a root note (C#), a minor third (E), a perfect fifth (G#) and a minor seventh (B):

Type: tetrad.
Formule: 1 ♭3 5 ♭7.
Music notes: C# (1) E (♭3) G# (5) B (♭7).
Chords to play with: v (G#m7).

ON GUITAR

ON PIANO

ON UKELELE

C#m7 chord [Musical explanation]

The C# minor seventh chord is a tetrad with formula 1 – ♭3 – 5 – ♭7. Therefore, to build it we need C# (1), E (♭3), G# (5) and B (♭7):

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (6)

This is due to the fact that a minor seventh chord is made up of 3 third intervals:

A minor interval (3 half steps between the 3rd and root).
A major inteval (4 half steps between the 5th and 3rd).
A minor inteval (3 half steps between the 7th and 5th).

If we apply this principle to the C#m7 chord we obtain that:

E is the minor third of C# because it is 3 half steps above the root.
G# is the perfect fifth of C# because it is 4 half steps above the 3rd.
B is the minor seventh of C# because it is 3 half steps above the 5th.

Thus, this confirms that C minor seventh chord is defined by:

Root (C#) – Minor Third (E) – Perfect Fifth (G#) – Minor Seventh (B)

To sum up, in order to build the C#m7 chord we need to add the minor seventh (flat 7th) to the C# minor chord.

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C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (7)

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C#m7 Guitar Chord

The C#m7 chord guitar has the following shape on the fretboard:

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (8)

Let’s analyze in detail this chord diagram above to make sure that we understand how to play the C#m7 on guitar. To do that, we will start by analyzing the 2 circles in blue, which indicate that on the strings 4 (D) and 2 (B) we have to place the fingers 3 (ring) and 2 (middle). In this case we need to play a barre chord, so we have to use as well the index finger (1) to press down the strings from 5 to 1.

Note by the way the number 4 in black on the left that indicates on which fret we start playing the chord.

On the other hand, at the top we see that we have the characters:

X C# G# B E G#

This simply means that in the:

Sixth string there is no sound.
Fifth string sounds the C# note.
Fourth string sounds the G# note.
Third string sounds the B note.
Second string sounds the E note.
First string sounds the G# note.

And at the bottom we find the numbers:

1 5 ♭7 ♭3 5

This indicates that in the:

Sixth string There is no number because there is no sound.
Fifth string sounds the root (1).
Fourth string sounds the minor third (5).
Third string sounds the minor seveth (♭7).
Second string sounds the minor third (♭3).
First string sounds the minor third (5).

⚠️ Important: it is not mandatory to memorize all this information to play the C#m7 chord on guitar. But it is highly recommended to know it in order to understand the musical theory behind each chord.

Other ways to play the C# minor 7 guitar chord

In addition to the diagram shown at the beginning of the article, we can also find the C#m7 chord in the following fretboard positions:

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (9)

C#m7 chord inversions

The 3 inversions of the C minor 7th chord are:

First inversion: C#m7/E.
Second inversion:C#m7/G#.
Third inversion: C#m7/B.

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (10)

C#m7 Ukulele Chord

Here you can see as well the C#m7 uke chord diagram:

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (11)

C#m7 Piano Chord

To play the C#m7 chord on piano we only need to find the same music notes on its keys:

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (12)

First Inversion (C#m7/E)

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (13)

Second Inversión (C#m7/G#)

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (14)

Third Inversión (C#m7/B)

C#m7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele | How to Play the C sharp (15)

Music scales in which the C# minor 7th chord can be found

B major scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
- Bmaj7 C#m7 D#m7 Emaj7 F#7 G#m7 A#m7♭5
A major scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
- Amaj7 Bm7 C#m7 Dmaj7 E7 F#m7 A#m7♭5
E major scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
- Emaj7 F#m7 G#m7 Amaj7 B7 C#m7 D#m7♭5
C# natural minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
- C#m7 D#m7b5 Emaj7 F#m7 G#m7 A#maj7 B7
F# natural minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
- F#m7 G#m7b5 Amaj7 Bm7 C#m7 Dmaj7 E7
G# natural minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
- G#m7 A#m7b5 Bmaj7 C#m7 D#m7 Emaj7 F#7
G# harmonic minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
- G#m(maj7) A#m7♭5 Bmaj7#5 C#m7 D#7 Emaj7 Gdim7
B melodic minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
- Bm(maj7) C#m7 Dmaj7#5 E7 F#7 G#dim7 A#m7♭5

C#m7 Chord PDF

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PDF

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Sergio J. C.

I love learning to play guitar, music theory and music in general. I never get tired of learning and trying to keep improving every day, step by step.

You can learn more about me on this link.