Minor Second Chords
Let’s look at how to play a Cm2 (C minor second) chord on the piano. We’ll also learn the pattern for building any minor second chord.
What Are Minor Second Chords?
Minor second chords are minor chords with an added note. The added note is the second note of the matching major scale.
So to build a minor second chord, we’ll start with a minor chord. We can build a minor chord by taking the matching major chord and lowering the middle note 1/2 step.
Then to convert the minor chord into a minor second chord, we’ll add the second note of the matching major scale.
Chord Types Printable
Learn to play 17 types of piano chords using 12 different root notes with this 35-page PDF! Chords are sorted both by their root note and type.
How to Play a Cm2 Chord
To play our Cm2 chord on the piano, we’ll first build a C minor chord. We can build a C minor chord by taking a C major chord, C – E – G, and lowering the middle note 1/2 step: C – E♭ – G
Then we’ll add the second note of the C major scale to the chord: D
So to play a Cm2 chord, we’ll play:
C – D – E♭ – G
We can use this pattern to build any minor second chord. We’ll first build a minor chord by taking the matching major chord and lowering the middle note 1/2 step. Then we’ll add the second note of the matching major scale.
Add9 Chords
A Cm2 chord uses the same notes as a Cmadd9 chord. A Cmadd9 chord is a minor chord with an added note. The added note is the ninth note of the matching major scale. The ninth note is the same note as the second note of the scale, just one octave up. So the Cmadd9 and Cm2 chords have the same notes, just in a different order:
Cm2: C – D – E♭ – G
Cmadd9: C – E♭ – G – D
Other Chord Types
Some of the other chord types you can learn are:
Major
Minor
Augmented
Diminished
Second
Suspended
Fifth
Sixth
Minor Sixth
Seventh
Minor Seventh
Major Seventh
Ninth
Minor Ninth
Major ninth
Conclusion
Now you know how to build a Cm2 chord on the piano, and you can use that knowledge to build any minor second chord!
Using piano chords to enjoy the piano is a wonderful way to play and create music.
I’ve tried these on the piano and, like seventh chords, there is a feel of the need to be resolved. Maybe you can teach us the chords they resolve to. Thanks.
Yes, if a chord seems to need to resolve, we can resolve it back to the major or minor chord it replaces. So if we’re playing a Cm2 chord, we can resolve it back to a Cm chord. Another way to approach this is to resolve the whole chord progression, by resolving back to the first chord in the key we’re playing in. So if we’re playing a Cm2 chord in the key of E flat major, we can resolve the Cm2 chord back to the E flat major chord, which will resolve the entire chord progression.
Thank you very much, Miss Julie Swihart, for your help on my way to learn to play the piano, in my dream from a very young age your writings and explanations about learning are really helping me a lot, so much so that I am already seeing small results in this which is my mission to learn to play the most complete instrument on the entire planet. Thank you infinitely, may God bless you and guide you always…!!!
Thank you, I’m so glad you’re learning a lot and finding it helpful!
Excelente INFO Julie, lo pondré en pravtica y… Felíz Año Nuevo +++ Prosperidad ! From Santiago-CHILE🇨🇱
Thank you so much, I’m glad it’s helpful!
Very useful info
I’m glad it’s helpful!