Lesson 30 · All 12 keys

6/9 Chord Trainer

Learn how a 6/9 chord is built one semitone-count at a time — a plain 6th chord (Lesson 20) with a 9th stacked on top, and no 7th of any kind — then put it to work with three MIDI exercises: playing all 12 6/9 chords around the circle of fourths, and 5 jazz plus 5 gospel chord progressions that show off its rich, fully "at rest" color, in every key.

How a 6/9 chord is built

A 6/9 chord — written 6/9 (e.g. C6/9), sometimes 6add9 — is a 5-note chord: a plain major triad with both a major 6th and a 9th stacked on top, and no 7th of any kind anywhere in the chord. Every 6/9 chord — in any of the 12 keys — is built the exact same way, by counting semitones to the right from a root note:

  1. Start on the root — the note that names the chord.
  2. Count 4 semitones to the right to land on the major 3rd.
  3. From there, count 3 more semitones to the right (7 semitones from the root) to land on the perfect 5th.
  4. From there, count 2 more semitones to the right (9 semitones from the root) to land on the major 6th.
  5. From there, count 5 more semitones to the right (14 semitones from the root — an octave plus a major 2nd) to land on the 9th.
Example — D 6/9 (D6/9): start on D, count 4 semitones right to reach F♯, 3 more to reach A, 2 more to reach B, then 5 more to reach E (an octave and a step above the root). D‑F♯‑A‑B‑E is the D6/9 chord. The pattern 4, 3, 2, 5 (18 semitones total from root to top) is what makes a chord a "6/9 chord" — every one of the 12 6/9 chords is this same shape, just moved to start on a different key.
Because it has no 7th of any kind, a 6/9 chord never pulls toward a resolution the way any 7th chord does — it's an even fuller, richer "at rest" color than a plain 6th chord (Lesson 20) or add9 chord (Lesson 26) alone, which is exactly why it's such a favorite closing tonic chord in jazz and gospel. Watch out for one mix-up: a 6/9 chord is not a dominant 9th chord (which stacks a 9th on top of a full dominant 7th chord, 7th included) — the 6/9 chord replaces that 7th with a plain 6th instead.

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 6/9 chords at a glance

ChordRoot+4 semitones → 3rd+3 semitones → 5th+2 semitones → 6th+5 semitones → 9th

This MIDI exercise plays all 12 6/9 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 6/9 chord (root, 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 9th together).

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

#ChordRoot3rd5th6th9th

Five jazz chord progressions built around the 6/9 chord — mostly using it as a rich, fully "at rest" substitute for a plain triad, 6th chord, or major 7th 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 6/9 chord — mostly using it as a rich, fully "at rest" substitute for a plain triad, 6th chord, or major 7th 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