F11 F dominant eleventh chord
- Notes
- F A C Eb G Bb
- Formula
- 1 3 5 b7 9 11
- Semitones
- 0 4 7 10 14 17 above the root
- Other symbols
- Fdom11
F to A is a major third (4 semitones), A to C is a minor third (3 semitones), C to Eb is a minor third (3 semitones), Eb to G is a major third (4 semitones), G to Bb is a minor third (3 semitones). All six notes stacked in thirds, 1 3 5 b7 9 11. The eleventh, Bb, sits a minor ninth above the third A and clashes with it, so in practice the third is left out: F C Eb G Bb is how F11 is usually played, the same notes as F9sus4. Leave out the fifth as well and the engine hears Eb/F instead (F Eb G Bb), so the guitar shapes here keep C.
F11 on the piano
Root position from F4: F4, A4, C5, Eb5, G5, Bb5. Middle C is C4.
F11 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 F as its lowest note.
1 1 1 3 1 3 (low E to high e)
Sounds F2 Bb2 Eb3 Bb3 C4 G4, third left out
x 8 8 8 8 8 (low E to high e)
Sounds F3 Bb3 Eb4 G4 C5, third 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 eleventh chords on other roots.
Inversions of F11
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 | F A C Eb G Bb | F11 | |
| 1st inversion | A C Eb G Bb F | F11/A | |
| 2nd inversion | C Eb G Bb F A | Cm13 (also read as F11/C) | |
| 3rd inversion | Eb G Bb F A C | F11/Eb | |
| 4th inversion | G Bb F A C Eb | F11/G | |
| 5th inversion | Bb F A C Eb G | F11/Bb |
Where F11 fits
F11 is V11 in Bb major. The eleventh, Bb, is the same note as the fourth of a sus chord and wants to fall to the third A; that is why the third is usually left out, and why F11 works as a softer V that delays the pull home. It often moves to F7 before the tonic.