Chords
D# Minor sixth
D# · F# · A# · B#
The minor sixth chord — a minor triad with a major sixth. Darker than it looks on paper.
Also written D#-6
D# Minor sixth
D# · F# · A# · B#
Voicings on the piano
| Voicing | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|
| Closed, root position | D#3 · F#3 · A#3 · B#4 | |
| Open (drop 2) | A#2 · D#3 · F#3 · B#4 | |
| Shell | D#3 · F#3 · B#4 | |
| Rootless | F#3 · A#3 · B#3 · E#4 |
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Anatomy
D# Minor sixth (D#m6) 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# Minor 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# Minor sixth belongs to.
In which keys
D# Minor sixth is diatonic to 3 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.
Scales that contain it
D# Minor sixth fits inside these scales, each built on D#.
- D# DorianD# · E# · F# · G# · A# · B# · C#
- D# Minor Sixth PentatonicD# · F# · G# · A# · B#
- D# Flat Three PentatonicD# · E# · F# · A# · B#
- D# Dorian b2D# · E · F# · G# · A# · B# · C#
Understanding the D# Minor sixth chord
Names and symbols
D#m6 is the chord symbol for D# Minor sixth; it is also written D#-6.
D# Minor sixth and Eb Minor sixth are the same sound spelled two ways; both have a page here, and each links to the other. Eb Minor sixth
How it is built
On D# it is D# · F# · A# · B#, stacking 1P · 3m · 5P · 6M. A minor third with a major sixth above it, which is an unusual combination: the chord is minor but its added note is bright.
How it is used
It is the tonic of the Dorian mode and the iv of a minor key, where it is a staple of the minor cadence. It is also a favourite in film noir and in gypsy jazz, where its ambiguity suits the idiom.
Its notes are the same as the half-diminished seventh a third below, which makes it a convenient reinterpretation point.
Learn this properly
Chapter 10: Chords: Triads and SeventhsCommon questions
- What notes are in D#m6?
- D#m6 contains D# · F# · A# · B#. Name any set of notes with the chord identifier.
- What scale fits a minor sixth chord?
- Dorian, and the melodic minor — both have a minor third and a raised sixth.
- How is m6 different from m7?
- The added note is a major sixth rather than a minor seventh, which makes the chord brighter and more mobile.
- What notes are in the D# Minor sixth chord?
- The D# Minor 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# Minor sixth chord?
- Measured from D#, the D# Minor 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.