NoteAtlas

Piano chord · Minor triad

C♯ minor piano chord (C♯m)

C♯, E and G♯, played together. Root position is highlighted on the keyboard below — press play to hear it.

C sharp minor in root position on the piano keyboard: C sharp, E, G sharpC4DFGABC5DEFGABC6EC♯D♭G♯A♭
C sharp minor chord in root position on the treble staff

Notes in C♯m: C♯, E and G♯

NoteInterval from the rootKey around middle C
C♯RootC♯4 · black key
EMinor 3rdE4 · white key
G♯Perfect 5thG♯4 · black key
  • Chord symbol: C♯m — C♯ minor
  • Formula: R · b3 · 5 (0 · 3 · 7 semitones from the root)
  • Right hand fingering: 1-3-5 — thumb, middle finger and little finger
  • Left hand fingering: 5-3-1, little finger on the root

How C♯m works

C♯ minor is black–white–black and one of the most comfortable minor shapes on the instrument — the two black keys give the hand something to hold on to. It is the relative minor of E major, so the two chords share a key signature and sit naturally side by side.

C♯m inversions

An inversion keeps the same notes and changes which one is at the bottom. That matters because it lets you move between chords without jumping: the closer the notes of the next chord are to the ones your hand is already holding, the smoother it sounds and the easier it is to play. Root position first, then two inversions.

  • Root position

    C sharp minor in root position: C sharp, E, G sharpEC♯D♭G♯A♭

    C♯–E–G♯ — the root, C♯, is at the bottom.

  • 1st inversion — E in the bass

    C sharp minor, 1st inversion — E in the bass: E, G sharp, C sharpEG♯A♭C♯D♭

    E–G♯–C♯ — the same three notes, reordered so E is lowest.

  • 2nd inversion — G♯ in the bass

    C sharp minor, 2nd inversion — G sharp in the bass: G sharp, C sharp, EEG♯A♭C♯D♭

    G♯–C♯–E — the same three notes, reordered so G♯ is lowest.

Common mistakes on C♯m

  • Spelling it D♭ minor. That key needs double flats, so C♯ minor is the version you will actually see.
  • Playing G natural instead of G♯.
  • Pressing C♯ with a collapsed thumb joint, which pushes the key sideways instead of down.
C♯ minor piano chord diagram
C♯m piano chord chart: C♯, E, G♯ highlighted and labeled on the keyboard.

Piano chord data last updated . Every diagram here, in the printable PDF and in the chart image comes from one dataset, so the paper and the screen cannot disagree.