Map it slowly
Find A on string 6 at fret 5. Play string 6, fret 5; string 6, fret 7; string 6, fret 8; string 5, fret 7; string 4, fret 5. Use a relaxed position and release pressure between repetitions. String 1 is high E.
Arpeggio · Am9 · Guitar
Am9 arpeggio on guitar
The Am9 arpeggio is A – C – E – G – B — chord tones 1 ♭3 5 ♭7 9. Am9 is a coloured ii chord or minor tonic; its sound is smooth, modern. Below, every A, C, E, G, B on the fretboard is marked, with the root in gold. Press play to hear a one-octave arpeggio, or tap any note.
Visualizer
Am9 on the fretboard.
Guitar · standard tuning
Piano
RootChord toneBeing played
Tempo100 bpm
Show
Sound
Play loops the arpeggio up and down one octave (switch Loop off for a single pass) in the position starting at fret 5. Tap any marked note to hear it. “Show” switches or combines the fretboard and keyboard; “Sound” picks the instrument you hear. Audio is synthesized in the browser.
Your next 10 minutes
Make A Minor 9th part of your playing
Make a short phrase
Play A – C – E – G – B in quarter notes at 60 bpm. Repeat starting from C, wrapping back to A. Do not speed up until every attack is even.
Hear it in context
Alternate C and G above a sustained A. These are degree ♭3 and ♭7. End a four-bar phrase on either one instead of always returning to the root.
Listen for this: Am9 has the colour “smooth, modern”. Name the degrees as you play, so you can recognize the sound in another key rather than remembering only a shape.
Understand the sound
Am9: from a pattern to a musical choice
What gives Am9 its identity?
The ninth colours the minor-seventh sound without changing its third or seventh. Let the top note sing instead of treating every voice equally.
Here the third is C, and degree ♭7 is G. Play A in the bass and compare these voices individually before combining them.
Turn the arpeggio into a melody
Try C – E – G – A as quarter notes, then repeat the first note and omit the last. The second phrase uses the same harmony with a different shape.
Sound the strings separately before playing them together. If a note is muted, adjust the finger angle instead of squeezing harder.
Your guitar checkpoint
Start with A on string 6, fret 5. The next note C is on string 6, fret 7. Name both notes aloud before playing, then find the same two pitches in another octave.
Before moving on, close the diagram and name the notes: A · C · E · G · B. Then play a two-bar phrase from memory and leave two bars of silence.
On piano
Am9 on the keyboard.
Reference
Am9 — chord tones & intervals.
| Chord tone | Note | Interval from A |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | A | unison (0 semitones) |
| ♭3 | C | minor 3rd (3 semitones) |
| 5 | E | perfect 5th (7 semitones) |
| ♭7 | G | minor 7th (10 semitones) |
| 9 | B | major 9th (14 semitones) |
Goes with: A Dorian (A B C D E F♯ G). Voicings: see the four-note chord voicings in the chord library.
Take it to the bandstand.Practice Radio streams endless changes to play the Am9 arpeggio over through all twelve keys, with the chord and scale shown live — plus ear-training and call & response modes.
▶ Open Practice RadioCommon questions
Am9 arpeggio FAQ.
What notes are in a Am9 arpeggio?
A – C – E – G – B. As chord tones: 1 ♭3 5 ♭7 9. Played one after another instead of together, that is the arpeggio.
What is a Am9 chord used for?
Am9 is a coloured ii chord or minor tonic. Its character is smooth, modern.
Which scale goes with Am9?
A Dorian (A B C D E F♯ G) — the arpeggio is the skeleton of that scale, so practise them together.
How do I practise the Am9 arpeggio on guitar?
Start on the root A on the low E string at fret 5 and play E-string fret 5, E-string fret 7, E-string fret 8, A-string fret 7, D-string fret 5, D-string fret 7. Then play it descending, then in eighth notes with a metronome, then use it in a short phrase over a suitable chord.
Keep going
Minor 9th arpeggio in every other key.
Same arpeggio on piano · Minor 9th hub · chord-scale theory.
Other arpeggios from A