Dmadd9 guitar chord
An open string left ringing against a fretted grip. Because it costs no finger, it sounds a note the closed shape has none left for -- a tension on top, or a pedal root underneath. Either a familiar grip with open strings added, or a shape so sparse the open strings carry the chord. These belong to their key rather than to a shape, so D, A, G and E have many and Eb a handful.
- Tap a note to hear it
- Arrows change position
- Fingers, notes or intervals
- Play the chord
About Dmadd9 — open string voicings
Dmadd9 is D, F, A and E — Dm with the ninth added, and no seventh.
It sounds sharp-edged. The ninth grinding a whole step under the minor third is the edge an m9 softens.
Dmadd9 notes and formula
| D | F | A | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ♭3 | 5 | 9 |
Minor tonic — a triad with one colour on it.
Also written Dm(add9), Dmin(add9) or D-add9. The same chord either way; which spelling you meet depends on who wrote the chart.
How to play Dmadd9
An open string left ringing against a fretted grip. It costs no finger, so it can sound a note the closed shape has none left for: a tension on top, or a pedal root underneath.
These belong to their key rather than to a shape: they cannot be moved up the neck. D, A, G and E have many; E♭ has a handful.
Dmadd9 has 4 of them, on strings 6-5-4-3-2, strings 5-4-3-2-1, the bottom four strings and strings 6-4-3-2-1, from the 2nd fret up to the 6th — every inversion the chord has: A in the bass and E in the bass. The one to learn first is the E shape at the 2nd fret, which is the easiest grip here.
Start with x53230 — no barre and 1 open string. 1 of the 9 shapes here sits in open position. 2 of the 9 need a barre. Together they cover the neck from the 2nd fret to the 15th.
| Frets | Where | Bass | Top | Hand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| x53230 | open position | D, root position | E | 1 open string |
| x5325x | 2nd fret | D, root position | E | all fretted |
| x53x55 | 3rd fret | D, root position | A | barred |
| x57760 | 5th fret | D, root position | F | 1 open string |
| x8775x | 5th fret | F, 1st inversion | E | all fretted |
| 10-8-x-9-10-x | 8th fret | D, root position | A | all fretted |
| 10-12-12-10-10-12 | 10th fret | D, root position | E | barred |
| x-x-12-10-10-12 | 10th fret | D, root position | E | all fretted |
| x-x-15-14-15-12 | 12th fret | F, 1st inversion | E | all fretted |
The same notes rebuilt from scratch give 13 drop 2 and 9 drop 3 voicings, each on its own page.
How to use Dmadd9
How you get to it. The turn that lands on Dmadd9 is Em7♭5 to A7♭9: the ii and the V of D minor, which is where a minor tonic is usually arrived at rather than simply begun on.
In which keys. Every note of Dmadd9 belongs to C major (the ii, the supertonic), D minor (the i, the tonic), F major (the vi, the submediant) and A minor (the iv, the subdominant).
What to play over Dmadd9
Every note of Dmadd9 is in D dorian, D natural minor, D harmonic minor and D melodic minor.
Chords near Dmadd9
Change one note of Dmadd9 and you have Dm (drop the ninth), Dsus2 (drop the minor third), Dsus2sus4 (the minor third becomes a fourth), Dm6 (the ninth becomes a sixth), Dm69 (add the sixth) or Dm7 (the ninth becomes a flat seventh).
Dmadd9 is a minor chord — root, minor third, fifth. Minor chords on every root.
On Dmadd9’s sound and use this page follows Robert Rawlins & Nor Eddine Bahha, Jazzology (Hal Leonard, 2005). The shapes and the derived voicings come from different places, and both are explained in where the chords and the theory come from.