Inversion

Inversions are ways of playing the same chord to either give you a different top note, complete sequence or just allow you to move your fingers less. It is just playing a chord in a different way. In classical harmony you'd have the original chord and two inversions, as follows:

Using C as an example:

• C E G - root position
• E G C - 1st inversion
• G C E - 2nd inversion

Take D minor 9 - D F A C E

N.B the below chords work on the premise your left hand is playing the 'D', or it's being covered by a bass player or some other low-end instrument.

• F A C E
• A C E F (though E and F clash a bit)
• C E F A
• E F A C

These really come into play when using them in a chord sequence. This means you'll have a more 'solid' sounding sequence and you don't have to re-finger 4 or 5 note chords each beat.

We're going to use a simple ii V I [minor 2, dominant 5, major 1.] in C, which is Dm, G7, Cmaj. Concentrating on two of the above voicings:

LH	RH	chord
D	F A C E	Dm9
G	F A B E	G13
C	E G B D	Cmaj9

LH	RH	chord
D	C E F A	Dm9
G	B E F A	G13
C	B D E G	Cmaj9

In both instance I've highlighted which fingers would move changing between those chords.