F#11 F# dominant eleventh chord
- Notes
- F# A# C# E G# B
- Formula
- 1 3 5 b7 9 11
- Semitones
- 0 4 7 10 14 17 above the root
- Also written
- Gb11 (Gb Bb Db Fb Ab Cb)
- Other symbols
- F#dom11
F# to A# is a major third (4 semitones), A# to C# is a minor third (3 semitones), C# to E is a minor third (3 semitones), E to G# is a major third (4 semitones), G# to B is a minor third (3 semitones). All six notes stacked in thirds, 1 3 5 b7 9 11. The eleventh, B, sits a minor ninth above the third A# and clashes with it, so in practice the third is left out: F# C# E G# B is how F#11 is usually played, the same notes as F#9sus4. Leave out the fifth as well and the engine hears E/F# instead (F# E G# B), so the guitar shapes here keep C#.
F#11 on the piano
Root position from F#4: F#4, A#4, C#5, E5, G#5, B5. Middle C is C4.
F#11 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.
2 2 2 4 2 4 (low E to high e)
Sounds F#2 B2 E3 B3 C#4 G#4, third left out
x 9 9 9 9 9 (low E to high e)
Sounds F#3 B3 E4 G#4 C#5, 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 F#11
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# E G# B | F#11 | |
| 1st inversion | A# C# E G# B F# | F#11/A# | |
| 2nd inversion | C# E G# B F# A# | F#11/C# | |
| 3rd inversion | E G# B F# A# C# | F#11/E | |
| 4th inversion | G# B F# A# C# E | F#11/G# | |
| 5th inversion | B F# A# C# E G# | F#11/B |
Where F#11 fits
F#11 is V11 in B major. The eleventh, B, 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 F#11 works as a softer V that delays the pull home. It often moves to F#7 before the tonic.