Lesson 38 · All 12 keys

Dominant 7♯11 Chord Trainer

Learn how a Dominant 7♯11 chord is built one semitone-count at a time — a plain dominant 7th chord (Lesson 13) with a raised 11th on top — the Lydian dominant color — then put it to work with three MIDI exercises: playing all 12 Dominant 7♯11 chords around the circle of fourths, and 5 jazz plus 5 gospel chord progressions that show off its color, in every key.

How a Dominant 7♯11 chord is built

A Dominant 7♯11 chord — written 7♯11 (e.g. C7♯11) — is a 5-note chord: a plain dominant 7th chord (Lesson 13) with a raised 11th on top — the Lydian dominant color. Every 7♯11 chord — in any of the 12 keys — is built the exact same way, by counting semitones to the right from a root note:

  1. The starting note — this note names the chord.
  2. Count 4 semitones up from the root — the major 3rd.
  3. Count 3 more semitones up from the 3rd (7 semitones from the root) — the perfect 5th.
  4. Count 3 more semitones up from the 5th (10 semitones from the root) — the minor 7th.
  5. Count 8 more semitones up from the 7th (18 semitones from the root — an octave plus a tritone) — the ♯11th, a raised 11th.
Example — A♭7♯11: start on A♭, count 4 semitones right to reach C, 3 more to reach E♭, 3 more to reach G♭, then 8 more to reach D (an octave and a tritone above the root). A♭‑C‑E♭‑G♭‑D is the A♭7♯11 chord.
This chord draws its notes from the Lydian dominant scale (a major scale with a lowered 7th and a raised 4th) rather than the plain Mixolydian scale a straight dominant 7th uses. Because a ♯11 avoids the harsh clash a plain 11th makes against the 3rd, this is one of the smoothest-sounding altered dominants — which is exactly why it's a favorite color for a static, one-chord vamp, especially sitting on the IV chord of a gospel groove.

Try it: pick a root and build the chord step by step

Step 1 of 5
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Chord toneNoteSemitones from rootMIDI #

All 12 Dominant 7♯11 chords at a glance

ChordRoot+4 semitones → Major 3rd+3 semitones → Perfect 5th+3 semitones → Minor 7th+8 semitones → ♯11th

This MIDI exercise plays all 12 Dominant 7♯11 chords, one after another, moving around the circle of fourths — each chord's root sits a perfect 4th (5 semitones) above the last one: C → F → B♭ → E♭ → A♭ → D♭ → G♭/F♯ → B → E → A → D → G → back to C. Every chord is played as a full 5-note Dominant 7♯11 chord (root, major 3rd, perfect 5th, minor 7th, ♯11th together).

Chord 1 of 12
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The 12 chords, in circle-of-fourths order

#ChordRootMajor 3rdPerfect 5thMinor 7th♯11th

Five jazz chord progressions built around the Dominant 7♯11 chord. Pick a progression and play it in one key or cycle through all 12.

Key of C
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Progression in C

DegreeChordNotes

Five gospel chord progressions built around the Dominant 7♯11 chord. Pick a progression and play it in one key or cycle through all 12.

Key of C
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Progression in C

DegreeChordNotes