Dm9 piano chord — the keys, the inversions, the theory

Dm9 is a minor ninth chord built from D, F, A, C, E. Below: the keys to press, every inversion with its own diagram, the intervals it is made of, the keys whose scale contains it, and a progression that actually uses it. Press any diagram to hear it.

Dm9

D · F · A · C · E

Piano keyboardC4C5

Semitones above the root: 0 – 3 – 7 – 10 – 14

The third is minor — one semitone lower than in a major chord — which is where the darker colour comes from.

Inversions of Dm9

  • Root position

    D · F · A · C · E · bass D

  • Inversion 1

    F · A · C · D · E · bass F

  • Inversion 2

    A · C · D · E · F · bass A

  • Inversion 3

    C · D · E · F · A · bass C

Same chord, different note at the bottom. Press a diagram to hear it — inversions are how you move between chords without jumping your hand across the keyboard.

Keys that contain Dm9

  • Cii
  • Fvi

In C it does this job: ii – V – I

  1. Dm9
  2. G
  3. C

Questions