On the mandolin, the Em6 chord is the minor 6th chord built from E, G, B, C#. Its first mandolin voicing is the movable voicing: G string open; D string at fret 2 (index finger); A string at fret 4 (middle finger); E string open. Keep this page open while you practise: it lists the notes, every practical voicing, the mistakes that make it sound wrong and the progressions where it does its best work.
What notes are in the Em6 chord?
The Em6 chord is a minor 6th chord, and its notes are fixed: E, G, B, C#. Every voicing on every instrument uses these same notes, in some order and in some octave — change one of them and you are playing a different chord. The table below lists each note with its interval from the root E, so you can see the structure of Em6 at a glance. On the mandolin, the movable voicing of Em6 puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
| Note | Interval |
|---|---|
| E | Root |
| G | b3 |
| B | 5 |
| C# | 6 |
The root is E, the note the chord is named after and the note your ear hears as home. Above it, the intervals in Em6 are b3, 5, 6. Those intervals are the fingerprint of the minor 6th quality — any chord with the same interval pattern, on any root, is the same kind of chord. On the mandolin, the notes appear in the order the fingering dictates, but the set of notes never changes.
Em6 sounds tense but beautiful, the chord that makes a minor tonic sound like a question. That character comes straight from the intervals above, not from the instrument: the same notes on piano, guitar or ukulele carry the same colour, even though the voicing changes. On the mandolin, the movable voicing of Em6 puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
Comparing Em6 with its closest relatives helps to fix it in your ear. In short, minor 6th against minor 7th: Em6 adds the 6th C#; the minor 7th adds the flattened 7th D instead. The 6th sounds more elegant and more tense. Play both chords slowly, one after the other, and notice which note moves. Naming that note out loud while you play is the fastest way to learn the difference. On the mandolin, the movable voicing of Em6 puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
How to play Em6 on mandolin
On the mandolin, Em6 has 3 voicings in the data below, and each one uses the same notes — E, G, B, C# — in a different place on the neck. There are 3 voicings listed for Em6 on the mandolin; learn the first, then add the others as you need them. Finger numbers below use 1 for the index finger, 2 for the middle finger, 3 for the ring finger and 4 for the little finger, and x means the string is not played.
For the movable voicing, Em6 sits in around fret 2: G string open; D string at fret 2 (index finger); A string at fret 4 (middle finger); E string open. This voicing is comfortable because the fretted notes sit close together, from fret 2 to fret 4, so your hand stays relaxed and every note can ring. Strum or pluck it slowly first and check that every note in Em6 — E, G, B, C# — sounds, with no buzz and no accidental open string.
Another way to play Em6 is the barre chord, in around fret 4: G string at fret 4 (index finger); D string at fret 5 (middle finger); A string at fret 4 (index finger); E string open. It barres across strings 1 to 3 at fret 4 with the index finger. The barre is the hard part: the index finger must press every string from 1 to 3 evenly at fret 4, so roll it slightly onto its bony side and keep it close to the fret wire. If the barre buzzes, move it a fraction closer to the fret and press from the arm, not the thumb alone. Strum or pluck it slowly first and check that every note in Em6 — E, G, B, C# — sounds, with no buzz and no accidental open string.
Another way to play Em6 is the movable voicing, in around fret 2: G string muted; D string at fret 2 (index finger); A string at fret 4 (ring finger); E string at fret 3 (middle finger). The challenge here is the muted string: 1 string is marked x, and it needs to stay silent. Let the edge of a fretting finger rest lightly on it — muting by touch, not by pressing. Strum or pluck it slowly first and check that every note in Em6 — E, G, B, C# — sounds, with no buzz and no accidental open string.
Choosing between the voicings of Em6 is a musical decision, not a right-or-wrong one. The open or low-position voicing rings the most and suits strumming, while a barre or movable voicing lets you slide Em6 up the neck to any key without changing the shape. When you change chords, pick the voicing of Em6 that sits closest to the chord before it — shorter moves between shapes mean faster, cleaner changes. Practise the change into Em6 from the chord that comes before it in your song, not the chord on its own, because the move is the skill. On the mandolin, the movable voicing voicing is the place to hear it in Em6.
A short practice routine for Em6 on the mandolin: play the first voicing four times slowly, checking each note, then change to it from the chord a fourth above E and back, four times, at a slow tempo. Then play the second voicing the same way. If a note buzzes, stop and fix the finger placement rather than playing through the buzz — clean notes at a slow tempo become clean notes at full tempo, while buzzes practised fast become habits. Use the Mandolin Chord Finder to see the diagram for Em6 while you practise, and the Chord Finder to compare it with the same chord on other instruments.
Common mistakes
These are the mistakes that most often make Em6 sound wrong on the mandolin, and each one has a concrete fix. Work through them one at a time rather than trying to fix everything at once.
Forgetting the minor 3rd. The 3rd must stay minor (G). If it comes out as G# the chord becomes a major 6th, a completely different colour. On the mandolin, the movable voicing of Em6 puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
Clashing the 6th with the 5th. C# sits a whole step above the 5th B, so low voicings can sound muddy. Keep the 6th in a higher octave than the 5th. On the mandolin, start with the first voicing above and listen for the notes E, G, B, C# in Em6.
Using it as a passing chord only. Em6 works as a tonic too. Try ending a minor phrase on it and listen to how it colours the resolution. On the mandolin, the movable voicing voicing is the place to hear it in Em6.
Missing one string of a course. Mandolin strings come in pairs, and Em6 needs both strings of each course to sound. If one string of a pair is muted by a neighbouring finger, the chord sounds thin. Check each course separately by plucking it on its own. On the mandolin, the movable voicing of Em6 puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
Where Em6 is used
Em6 is not a diatonic triad in any major or minor key, because it is an extended or altered chord, but its base triad belongs to the key of C major, the key of D major, the key of G major. a minor tonic in jazz, where the 6th replaces the 7th as the added note. As a dominant-type chord it also points toward A major, the key a perfect fourth above E, which is the tonic it most often resolves to. That is where Em6 does its work: not as a home chord, but as a chord that creates movement and then resolves. On the mandolin, the movable voicing voicing is the place to hear it in Em6.
Because Em6 is an extended or altered chord, it appears in progressions as a colour or a dominant rather than as a diatonic staple. Try it in place of the plain E triad in a progression you already know, and listen to how the extra notes change the feel — that substitution is the usual way extended chords enter real music. The Chord Progression Builder lets you try Em6 in a progression in any key and hear how it connects to the chords around it. On the mandolin, the movable voicing of Em6 puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
The same chord on other instruments is covered in Em6 on guitar, Em6 on piano, Em6 on ukulele, and the scales that fit over it are the E major scale and the E minor pentatonic scale. Learning Em6 on the mandolin and then checking it on another instrument is one of the best ways to fix the notes — E, G, B, C# — in your memory, because the notes stay the same while everything else changes.
Practising Em6
A short worked example makes Em6 concrete. Play the four-chord progression A – E – F#m – D in A major, the key Em6 most often resolves toward: A – E – F#m – D. Play each chord for one bar at a slow tempo, and listen to how Em6 sounds in that sequence — whether it feels like home, like a lift, or like a chord on its way somewhere else. Then play the same four chords in a different order, starting on Em6 itself, and notice how its character changes when it opens the progression instead of sitting inside it. On the mandolin, start with the first voicing above and listen for the notes E, G, B, C# in Em6.
For a second exercise, play Em6 and then the chord a fourth above E, back and forth, four times each. That move — a chord and the chord a fourth above it — is the most common resolution in Western music, and it is the move Em6 is built for when it acts as a dominant. Finish by playing Em6 on its own, slowly, and naming each note out loud as you play it: E, G, B, C#. Naming the notes while you play them is what turns a shape into knowledge you can use in any key. Test yourself with the Practice Chord Quiz and keep time with the Metronome as the tempo rises. On the mandolin, the movable voicing of Em6 puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Em6 used?
Em6 is a minor tonic in jazz and a colour chord in minor-key songs. It appears as the i chord in minor keys and the iv chord in major keys, often in slow, exposed passages. On the mandolin, the voicings above put that note under your fingers.
How do you play Em6 on the mandolin?
The first voicing is the movable voicing: frets 0–2–4–0, fingers 0–1–2–0, on the mandolin. That voicing uses the notes E, G, B, C#, and it is the one to learn first. The page above lists more voicings for Em6, so you can choose the shape nearest the chords around it.
Is Em6 hard to play on the mandolin?
It depends on the voicing. The first voicing of Em6 on the mandolin is the easiest starting point, and the movable voicings further up the neck are harder because they need a barre or a wider stretch. Practise the first voicing cleanly at a slow tempo before you try the others, and the harder shapes will come more easily.
What is the easiest voicing of Em6 on the mandolin?
The movable voicing is the easiest voicing listed for Em6 on the mandolin: frets 0–2–4–0, fingers 0–1–2–0. Learn that shape first, get every note ringing cleanly, and only then move on to the alternative voicings further up the neck.
What notes are in Em6?
Em6 contains E, G, B, C#: the root E, the minor 3rd G, the perfect 5th B and the added 6th C#. The 6th is the note that gives it its elegant, noir colour. On the mandolin, the voicings above put that note under your fingers.