C minor Fingerstyle Melody for Beginners

Enough of E minor Key!

Hey, guys, today I want to challenge you with this excellent C minor fingerstyle melody for beginners.

One of the reasons we will be working on a C minor melody is because I want you to play in a different key.

Too often, guitar players always play in the same keys, E minor, A minor, G major, to mention the most popular.

Since I started teaching you guys, I mainly focused on easy keys, so as a guitar teacher, I feel I am the first one who should push you to learn stuff that is out of your comfort zone.

In this C minor fingerstyle melody, we will learn three chords and a straightforward melody. The C minor key is naturally more challenging than, for example, A minor or E minor key because we can’t benefit from the open strings.

There are three C minor flats, so the only two notes that can be played on the open strings are D and G. All the other notes will be fretted; therefore, the exercise is more challenging.

However, I did my best to write the most simple melody in this key so that anyone can give it a go and finally play something different.

The tab is on the screen so you can play along, but you can also download it inside the Creative Fingerstyle program available for members.

I hope you get inspired, guys.

Grab your guitar, and let’s get started.

The Video

The Chord Progression

In this C minor fingerstyle melody, we will be learning three chords: Cm, Bb, and Ab. 

These chords can be quite challenging at first, so I have decided to simplify them into simple triads that can be players on three strings. The three triads will also share the same shape, so you only have to learn one shape.

Check the diagram below.

The Fingerstyle Pattern – Section 1

Section 1 of the exercise is mainly an intro played with the simple triads; therefore, there is no melody, and the arpeggio pattern is always the same.

This C minor fingerstyle melody is in 6/8, so there will be six notes per bar. For this intro, we will be playing a simple plucking pattern on three strings. Only.

I highly recommend that you split the six notes into two groups of three notes. I love the groove played in triplets. It gives a nice pace to the chords.

Check the diagram below.

The Melody

Once you feel ready with the chords, move on to the melody. Here things are a bit more challenging because we will have to combine the melody with the chord.

I did my best to write the most simple melody, so I hope you can learn it quickly and enjoy each chord’s sound and musicality.

This is the first part of the melody. You can download the full tab inside the membership area. Info below.