Banjo Bm chord (Sawmill)B minor on the 5-string banjo: 4 4 2 4, and 6 more shapes

Bm chord chart for 5-string banjo in Sawmill tuning: 4 4 2 4, first position, with the short 5th string marked
Bm (B minor) on the 5-string banjo, Sawmill: 4 4 2 4, string 4 to string 1. Fingers are numbered on the dots; copper marks the root; the green ring on the left is the 5th string, solid when it’s in the chord.

Frets, string 4 to string 1: 4 4 2 4 (first position)

  1. String 4 (D): 4th fret, middle finger, F♯
  2. String 3 (G): 4th fret, ring finger, B
  3. String 2 (C): 2nd fret, index finger, D
  4. String 1 (D): 4th fret, little finger, F♯
  5. String 5, the short g: open, G, not in the chord

Sounds: F♯ B D F♯  ·  Bm is B, D, F♯ (1 · ♭3 · 5)

Found in: G major (iii), A major (ii), D major (vi), A mixolydian (ii), D mixolydian (vi), A dorian (ii)

The 5th string: the short g rubs against the F♯ in this shape, a semitone away: some players let it ring, some skip it.

Sawmill tuning: gDGCD, the short 5th string first, then strings 4 to 1.

Hear it in the app ›

The link can’t set the tuning: the app starts in open G. Choose Sawmill once in its Settings and it remembers.

More Bm shapes

  1. 314gDBDF♯0 4 2 4
    open
  2. 341gF♯BDD4 4 2 0
    open
  3. 4fr13gDBF♯D0 4 6 0
    4fr
  4. 6fr3214gBDF♯B9 7 6 9
    6fr
  5. 9fr134gBF♯BD9 11 11 0
    9fr
  6. 11fr2113gDF♯BD12 11 11 12
    11fr

Other B chords in Sawmill

BBmB7Bm7Bmaj7B6Bsus4Bsus2Bdim

Other minor chords

GmAmDmCmBmEmFmB♭mE♭mF♯mC♯mA♭m

Bm in other tunings

Open GDouble COpen DC Tuning

All Sawmill banjo chords · Printable chart (PDF) · How to tune · The app