Chords
D Sixth
D · F# · A · B
The major sixth chord — a major triad with a sixth added. Bright, finished, and less restless than a major seventh.
Also written Dadd6 · Dadd13 · DM6
D Sixth
D · F# · A · B
Voicings on the piano
| Voicing | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|
| Closed, root position | D3 · F#3 · A3 · B3 | |
| Open (drop 2) | A2 · D3 · F#3 · B3 | |
| Shell | D3 · F#3 · B3 | |
| Rootless | F#3 · A3 · B3 |
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Anatomy
D Sixth (D6) contains the notes D · F# · A · B, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.
Read on: how triads are built · seventh chords
Inversions
An inversion of D Sixth puts a chord tone other than D in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.
Where it lives
The keys and the scales D Sixth belongs to.
In which keys
D Sixth is diatonic to 6 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.
Scales that contain it
D Sixth fits inside these scales, each built on D.
- D Major PentatonicD · E · F# · A · B
- D Major BluesD · E · F · F# · A · B
- D MajorD · E · F# · G · A · B · C#
- D LydianD · E · F# · G# · A · B · C#
- D MixolydianD · E · F# · G · A · B · C
- D Lydian DominantD · E · F# · G# · A · B · C
- D Half-Whole DiminishedD · Eb · F · F# · G# · A · B · C
- D ScriabinD · Eb · F# · A · B
Understanding the D Sixth chord
Names and symbols
D6 is the chord symbol for D Sixth; it is also written Dadd6, Dadd13, DM6.
How it is built
On D it is D · F# · A · B, stacking 1P · 3M · 5P · 6M. The sixth is added above the fifth rather than replacing anything.
How it is used
Before the major seventh became the default jazz tonic, the 6 chord was. It ends a swing arrangement with more colour than a plain triad and less forward lean than a maj7, which is exactly why big-band writing closes on it.
It shares all four notes with the minor seventh chord a third below, so D6 and that chord are two readings of the same pitch set.
Learn this properly
Chapter 10: Chords: Triads and SeventhsCommon questions
- What notes are in D6?
- D6 contains D · F# · A · B. Name any set of notes with the chord identifier.
- What is the difference between a 6 chord and a maj7?
- The added note. A 6 chord adds a major sixth; a maj7 adds a major seventh. The 6 sounds more settled, the maj7 more lush.
- Is a 6 chord the same as a minor seventh?
- It contains the same four notes as the minor seventh chord a third below. Which one you call it depends on which note is functioning as the root.
- What notes are in the D Sixth chord?
- The D Sixth chord contains the notes D · F# · A · B: the root D with the intervals 1P, 3M, 5P, 6M stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally D, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
- What intervals make up the D Sixth chord?
- Measured from D, the D Sixth chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3M, 5P, 6M. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.