Eb7#9 Eb dominant seventh sharp nine chord
- Notes
- Eb G Bb Db F#
- Formula
- 1 3 5 b7 #9
- Semitones
- 0 4 7 10 15 above the root
- Also written
- D#7#9 (D# F## A# C# E##)
- Other symbols
- Eb7(#9), Eb7+9
Eb to G is a major third (4 semitones), G to Bb is a minor third (3 semitones), Bb to Db is a minor third (3 semitones), Db to F# is a perfect fourth (5 semitones). A dominant seventh with a raised ninth, F#. On the keyboard F# is the same key as the minor third, so the chord holds both a major and a minor third; it is written as a sharp ninth because it sits above the seventh and the letter names follow the stack of thirds.
Eb7#9 on the piano
Root position from Eb4: Eb4, G4, Bb4, Db5, F#5. Middle C is C4.
Eb7#9 on the guitar
Standard tuning (E A D G B E). Strings run low E on the left to high e on the right, frets downwards; × is a muted string, ○ an open string, and each dot shows the note it sounds, with the root in blue-green. Every shape below has Eb as its lowest note.
x 6 5 6 7 x (low E to high e)
Sounds Eb3 G3 Db4 F#4, fifth left out
The E-shape and A-shape grips are movable: an E-shape chord's root is the note under your first finger on the low E string, an A-shape chord's root is the note on the A string. Slide the same grip up or down to play dominant seventh sharp nine chords on other roots.
Inversions of Eb7#9
An inversion puts a note other than the root in the bass. The name is what semicord's chord finder calls those notes played bottom to top; a slash name like C/E means a C chord with E in the bass.
| Position | Notes, bass first | Named | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Root position | Eb G Bb Db F# | Eb7#9 | |
| 1st inversion | G Bb Db F# Eb | Ebm7/G (also read as Eb7#9/G) | |
| 2nd inversion | Bb Db F# Eb G | Eb7#9/Bb | |
| 3rd inversion | Db F# Eb G Bb | Eb7#9/Db | |
| 4th inversion | F# Eb G Bb Db | Eb7/Gb (also read as Eb7#9/F#) |
Where Eb7#9 fits
Eb7#9 has no place among the chords built from a major or minor scale: it holds a major third, G, and the sharp ninth F#, which sounds the same as the minor third. That major–minor clash is the blues in one chord. It is used as the I chord of a blues or a funk vamp, and as a tense V chord in jazz; Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze" made E7#9 famous, which is why guitarists call it the Hendrix chord.