F#add9 F# major add nine chord
- Notes
- F# A# C# G#
- Formula
- 1 3 5 9
- Semitones
- 0 4 7 14 above the root
- Also written
- Gbadd9 (Gb Bb Db Ab)
- Other symbols
- F#(add9), F#add2
F# to A# is a major third (4 semitones), A# to C# is a minor third (3 semitones), C# to G# is a perfect fifth (7 semitones). A major triad with the ninth, G#, added and no seventh. The ninth is the second of the scale an octave up, so with G# played right next to the root the same chord is often written F#add2. It is not F#sus2: the third A# is still there.
F#add9 on the piano
Root position from F#4: F#4, A#4, C#5, G#5. Middle C is C4.
F#add9 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 1 x 1 2 x (low E to high e)
Sounds F#2 A#2 G#3 C#4
x 9 8 x 9 9 (low E to high e)
Sounds F#3 A#3 G#4 C#5
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 major add nine chords on other roots.
Inversions of F#add9
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# G# | F#add9 | |
| 1st inversion | A# C# G# F# | F#add9/A# | |
| 2nd inversion | C# G# F# A# | F#add9/C# | |
| 3rd inversion | G# F# A# C# | F#/G# (also read as F#add9/G#) |
Where F#add9 fits
F#add9 is I in F# major, IV in C# major, V in B major. The added G# belongs to all three of those keys, so F#add9 can stand in for F# wherever it appears; it keeps the major sound but softens it. It is not a substitute for F#9, which also has the seventh E.