What notes are in the Eb 11b9 chord?

The Eb 11b9 chord contains the notes Eb · Bb · Db · Fb · Ab: the root Eb with the intervals 1P, 5P, 7m, 9m, 11P stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Eb, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.

What intervals make up the Eb 11b9 chord?

Measured from Eb, the Eb 11b9 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 5P, 7m, 9m, 11P. 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.

How do I play the Eb 11b9 chord?

On guitar the most common Eb 11b9 shape is x11120, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play Eb3 · Bb3 · Db4 · Fb4 · Ab4 with the right hand, or move the root down into the left hand and keep the rest above it. Every shape on this page plays when you press it.

Eb 11b9 Chord (Eb11b9): Notes, Piano & Guitar

Play it on your instrument

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Voicings on the piano

Voicing	Notes	Play it on your instrument
Closed, root position	Eb3 · Bb3 · Db4 · Fb4 · Ab4
Open (drop 2)	Eb3 · Fb3 · Bb3 · Db4 · Ab4
Rootless	Db3 · Fb3 · Ab3

Tap a key or a fret to hear it.

Anatomy

Eb 11b9 (Eb11b9) contains the notes Eb · Bb · Db · Fb · Ab, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.

Read on: how triads are built · seventh chords · extensions

Inversions

An inversion of Eb 11b9 puts a chord tone other than Eb in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.

Where it lives

The keys and the scales Eb 11b9 belongs to.

In which keys

Eb 11b9 is diatonic to 2 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.

B majorIII11b9Tonic
G# minorV11b9Dominant

Extensions beyond the seventh count when every note sits in the key.

Scales that contain it

Eb 11b9 fits inside these scales, each built on Eb.

Eb PhrygianEb · Fb · Gb · Ab · Bb · Cb · Db
Eb Phrygian DominantEb · Fb · G · Ab · Bb · Cb · Db
Eb Dorian b2Eb · Fb · Gb · Ab · Bb · C · Db
Eb Spanish HeptatonicEb · Fb · Gb · G · Ab · Bb · Cb · Db

Related chords

Chords that share most of their notes with Eb 11b9: simpler and richer stacks of the same notes, and the substitutes a chart would accept.

Simpler

Eb7sus4Eb · Ab · Bb · Db
Ebsus4Eb · Ab · Bb
Eb5Eb · Bb

Richer

Eb7sus4b9b13Eb · Ab · Bb · Db · Fb · Cb

11b9 on every root

C11b9 C#11b9 D11b9 D#11b9 E11b9 F11b9 F#11b9 G11b9 G#11b9 A11b9 A#11b9 Bb11b9 B11b9

Open it in a tool

Understanding the Eb 11b9 chord

Names and symbols

Eb11b9 is the chord symbol for Eb 11b9.

Eb 11b9 and D# 11b9 are the same sound spelled two ways; both have a page here, and each links to the other. D# 11b9

Common questions

What notes are in the Eb 11b9 chord?: The Eb 11b9 chord contains the notes Eb · Bb · Db · Fb · Ab: the root Eb with the intervals 1P, 5P, 7m, 9m, 11P stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Eb, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
What intervals make up the Eb 11b9 chord?: Measured from Eb, the Eb 11b9 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 5P, 7m, 9m, 11P. 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.
How do I play the Eb 11b9 chord?: On guitar the most common Eb 11b9 shape is x11120, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play Eb3 · Bb3 · Db4 · Fb4 · Ab4 with the right hand, or move the root down into the left hand and keep the rest above it. Every shape on this page plays when you press it.