The am add9 chord is a basic chord with a major 9th that makes an excellent addition to chord progressions. While playing it may be tricky due to a gap between your middle finger and pinky fingers, try keeping things loose as you play this chord for optimal results.
This barre chord stands out from others by including a flat 7th note; hence its other name of Sus2.
Scales
Today’s Guitar Chord of the Day is A Minor Add 9, commonly written as Am/9. This chord is simple to play, yet makes an amazing sounding variation on a regular Am chord. Use this one instead of any minor chord as well as chords iiii in major keys (although adding 9 does introduce non-scale notes that still sound great!).
Add9, Maj9 and 9 chords are composed from triads with roots (R), major third (M) and perfect fifth (5th) chords; typically these ninths are added above triads on scale degrees 1 through 8 to add that extra “oomph!” The main distinction between them and add9 chords is that only the maj9 includes major seventh notes while adding9 doesn’t.
Addition of a ninth is possible above an interval without including its seventh; for instance, Cmadd9 would consist of C, E and G with D as an added ninth while C(add9) would simply consist of A, C and E with an added seventh (D).
This chord can be played using standard barre chord shapes or with the moveable chord shape shown below. This diagram depicts it at fret 3, but you can use it at other frets to change its key as needed. It makes an ideal accompaniment for rock, blues and country music alike; especially effective when combined with minor pentatonic scales as seen in this demo solo by David Gilmour himself!
Intervals
Added ninth chords are characterised by intervals that span an octave and step. For instance, a Cadd9 chord contains note D (an octave + step above its root chord of C). As such, these chords can be classified as add9 chords; major 9th chords. To construct minor add9s using this approach using the root triad of the minor scale as its key of origin as opposed to C as its root chord root triad root key of origin as described above.
Chords
Add9 chords are an ideal choice for beginners as they are relatively straightforward. Composed of a major triad with an additional ninth (1 3 5 9), add9s can also serve as embellishments in more complex songs or chord progressions; combined with sus2, sus4, maj6, or maj7 chords to create complex harmonic progressions.
Add9 chords can be named using various root notes. Some examples include Cadd9, CMaj9 and Cdom9. What distinguishes these chords is either their inclusion of or lack of a seventh note; when added this creates major chords while leaving out causes minor ones.
An additional way of distinguishing an add9 chord is its shape. An add9 chord features closed chords without open strings – meaning they cannot be played from all positions on the fretboard. These chords’ names are determined by their root notes; therefore it is essential that one knows which root note each add9 chord utilizes before learning them.
Some add9 chords are also known as suspended chords or added tone chords due to their similarity to suspended chords, and can even be mistaken for one another in certain instances. If a chord contains either its second or ninth note of its scale, it would be considered an add9 (minor add9 or augmented minor add9) chord.
Add9 chords are often composed of A, C and E notes; an A minor add9 includes these notes plus G5 from the A minor scale and B9 for its ninth note; this chord type is often referred to as Amsus2 as it can be played either with a flat or sharp seventh tone.
Some add9 chords can be played as power chords. Cadd9, one of the more frequently encountered power chords, can be played as either an X03230 or X31033 chord. Another variation on this theme can be found with Gadd9 that can be played as either an X02240 or X00333 chord. These chords are simple and accessible as they use the barre chord position that can easily be moved up and down the neck.