Skip to content

Gm7 Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukelele – How to Play G minor seventh

Sergio J. C.
14 de August de 2022

The G minor 7th chord (Gm7) is built from a root note (G), a minor third (B♭), a perfect fifth (D) and a minor seventh (F):

  • Type: tetrad.
  • Formule: 1 ♭3 5 ♭7.
  • Music notes: G (1) B♭ (♭3) D (5) F (♭7).
  • Chords to play with: v (Dm7).
Gm7 chord pentagram staff stave

Gm7 chord [Musical explanation]

The G minor seventh chord is a tetrad with formula 1 – ♭3 – 5 – ♭7. Therefore, to build it we need G (1), B♭ (♭3), D (5) and F (♭7):

what notes are in a Gm7 chord

This is due to the fact that a minor seventh chord is made up of 3 third intervals:

  • A minor interval (3 half steps between the 3rd and root).
  • A major inteval (4 half steps between the 5th and 3rd).
  • A minor inteval (3 half steps between the 7th and 5th).

If we apply this principle to the Gm7 chord we obtain that:

  • B♭ is the minor third of G because it is 3 half steps above the root.
  • D is the perfect fifth of G because it is 4 half steps above the 3rd.
  • F is the minor seventh of G because it is 3 half steps above the 5th.

Thus, this confirms that G minor seventh chord is defined by:

Root (G) – Minor Third (B♭) – Perfect Fifth (D) – Minor Seventh (F)

To sum up, in order to build the Gm7 chord we need to add the minor seventh (flat 7th) to the G minor chord.

Gm7 Guitar Chord

The Gm7 chord guitar has the following shape on the fretboard:

Gm7 guitar chord
Gm7 guitar diagram

Let’s analyze in detail this chord diagram above to make sure that we understand how to play the Gm7 on guitar.

Let’s start by analyzing the circle in blue, which indicates that on the string 5 (A) we have to place the finger 3 (ring finger) and we have to use as well the index finger (1) to press down the strings from 6 to 1.

Note by the way the number 1 in black on the left that indicates on which fret we start playing the chord.

On the other hand, at the top we see that we have the characters:

G D F B♭  D G

This simply means that in the:

  • Sixth string sounds the G note.
  • Fifth string sounds the D note.
  • Fourth string sounds the F note.
  • Third string sounds the B♭ note.
  • Second string sounds the D note.
  • First stringsounds the G note.

And at the bottom we find the numbers:

1  5 ♭7  ♭3 5 1

This indicates that in the:

  • Sixth string sounds the root (1).
  • Fifth string sounds the perfect fifth (5).
  • Fourth string sounds the minor seveth (♭7).
  • Third string sounds the minor third (♭3).
  • Second string sounds the perfect fifth (5).
  • First string sounds the root (1).

⚠️ Important: it is not mandatory to memorize all this information to play the Gm7 chord on guitar. But it is highly recommended to know it in order to understand the musical theory behind each chord.

Other ways to play the G minor 7 guitar chord

In addition to the diagram shown at the beginning of the article, we can also find the Gm7 chord in the following fretboard positions:

Gm7 chord guitar chart
Gm7 chord guitar chart

Gm7 chord inversions

The 3 inversions of the G minor 7th chord are:

  • First inversion: Gm7/B♭.
  • Second inversion: Gm7/D.
  • Third inversion: Gm7/F.
Gm7 guitar chord inversion

Gm7 Ukulele Chord

Here you can see as well the Gm7 uke chord diagram:

Gm7 ukulele
Gm7 on ukulele

Gm7 Piano Chord

To play the Gm7 chord on piano we only need to find the same music notes on its keys:

Gm7 piano chord

First Inversion (Gm7/B♭)

Gm7/Bb piano chord 1st inversion

Second Inversión (Gm7/D)

Gm7/D piano chord 2nd inversion

Third Inversión (Gm7/F)

Gm7/F piano chord inversion

Music scales in which the G minor 7th chord can be found

  • F# major scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
    • Fmaj7 Gm7 Am7 B♭maj7 C7 Dm7 Em7♭5
  • D# major scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
    • D#maj7 Fm7 Gm7 G#maj7 A#7 Cm7 Dm7♭5
  • A# major scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
    • A#maj7 Cm7 Dm7 D#maj7 F7 Gm7 Am7♭5
  • G natural minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
    • Gm7 Am7♭5 B♭maj7 Cm7 Dm7 E♭maj7 F7
  • D natural minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
    • Dm7 Em7♭5 Fmaj7 Gm7 Am7 B♭maj7 C7
  • C natural minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
    • Cm7 Dm7♭5 E♭maj7 Fm7 Gm7 A♭maj7 B♭7
  • D harmonic minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
    • Dm(maj7) Em7♭5 Fmaj7#5 Gm7 A7 B♭maj7 D♭dim7
  • F melodic minor scale (harmonized with 7th chords)
    • Fm(maj7) Gm7 A♭maj7#5 B♭7 C7 Ddim7 Em7♭5

Gm7 Chord PDF

If you liked this lesson and want to download it in PDF click here below:

Array

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *