C dominant ninth

C9

Also written C7(9) · Cdom9

NotesC · E · G · B♭ · D
Formula1 · 3 · 5 · ♭7 · 9
C1E3G5D9B♭♭7
All its notes, from the root

The dominant ninth — what a jazz pianist plays on a plain C7 without being asked. V of F major. Leave out the root and the four notes left are Eø7: the rootless C9 is exactly that chord.

How pianists voice C9

Nobody plays a jazz chord in root position. These are the shapes that actually get played — the same ones Cadenza shows when you play the chord.

Shell Left hand

C1E3B♭♭7

1 · 3 · ♭7 — root, 3rd and 7th: the three notes that say what the chord is. Left hand, low; everything else is colour.

Rootless A From the 3rd

E3G5D9B♭♭7

3 · 5 · ♭7 · 9 — no root: the bass player has it. The left-hand voicing of modern jazz piano. Without C underneath, the same keys read as Eø7 — the bass turns them into C9.

Rootless B From the 7th

D9E3G5B♭♭7

♭7 · 9 · 3 · 5 — the other half of the pair. A and B alternate through a ii–V–I so the hand barely moves.

Drop 2 Two hands

G5C1E3B♭♭7

5 · 1 · 3 · ♭7 — close position with the second voice from the top dropped an octave: wider, warmer, the standard for chord melody.

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