Learn The E Minor Chord on Bass (Em)

How to Play The E Minor Chord on Bass

The most common way to play the E minor chord on bass is at the 7th position of the fretboard, on the E, A, and D strings. Play it with your ring, pinky, and index fingers. Here’s how to place your fingers:

• Ring finger (3) on fret 7 of the E string
• Pinky finger (4) on fret 7 of the A string
• Index finger (1) on fret 5 of the D string

The root note, E, is on the 7th fret of the A string, which you can see in the chord diagram below. 

You can also play E minor as a dyad, which means playing it with only the 2 primary intervals: the root (E) and the minor 3rd (G). 

You can use this E minor arpeggio bass diagram to visualize and construct the E minor chord in any position on your fretboard.

Other names for E Minor

The E minor chord can be written in several ways, including:

• E Minor
• Emin
• Em

These notations all represent the same chord, built from the notes E, G, and B.

Practicing the E Minor chord on bass

The E minor chord is the root chord in the E natural minor scale, so use it in a 1-4-5 progression in the key of E minor. This gives you the chords Em – Am – Bm.

The E minor chord also sounds great as the minor vi chord in the G major scale, and the minor ii chord in the D major scale. Use it in a G major chord progression such as G – Emin – C – D, or a D major chord progression such as D – Bmin – Emin – A