F9 F dominant ninth chord
- Notes
- F A C Eb G
- Formula
- 1 3 5 b7 9
- Semitones
- 0 4 7 10 14 above the root
- Other symbols
- Fdom9
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). A dominant seventh (F7) with the ninth, G, on top. Guitarists usually leave out the fifth, C; the chord still reads as F9 while the third A and seventh Eb are there.
F9 on the piano
Root position from F4: F4, A4, C5, Eb5, G5. Middle C is C4.
F9 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 3 1 2 1 3 (low E to high e)
Sounds F2 C3 Eb3 A3 C4 G4
x 8 7 8 8 8 (low E to high e)
Sounds F3 A3 Eb4 G4 C5
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 ninth chords on other roots.
Inversions of F9
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 | F9 | |
| 1st inversion | A C Eb G F | F9/A | |
| 2nd inversion | C Eb G F A | F9/C | |
| 3rd inversion | Eb G F A C | F9/Eb | |
| 4th inversion | G F A C Eb | F7/G (also read as F9/G) |
Where F9 fits
F9 is V9 in Bb major. It resolves like F7. In funk and blues it is also played as I9, IV9 and V9 of a twelve-bar blues, with no pull to resolve at all. Without the root, its upper four notes A C Eb G are Am7b5, which is why pianists who leave the root to the bass player grab that shape.