E six-nine

E6/9

Also written E69 · E6add9

NotesE · G♯ · B · C♯ · F♯
Formula1 · 3 · 5 · 6 · 9
E1B5G♯3C♯6F♯9
All its notes, from the root

The major 6 with the 9th added. There is no 7th to pull anywhere, so it is the jazz tonic when Emaj7 sounds too sweet — and every note belongs to the E major pentatonic scale.

How pianists voice E6/9

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

E1G♯3C♯6

1 · 3 · 6 — root, 3rd and 6th: the three notes that say what the chord is. Left hand, low; everything else is colour.

Rootless A From the 3rd

B5G♯3C♯6F♯9

3 · 5 · 6 · 9 — no root: the bass player has it. The left-hand voicing of modern jazz piano. Without E underneath, the same keys read as G♯m11 — the bass turns them into E6/9.

Rootless B From the 6th

B5C♯6F♯9G♯3

6 · 9 · 3 · 5 — the other half of the pair. A and B alternate through a ii–V–I so the hand barely moves. Without E underneath, the same keys read as D♭7sus4 — the bass turns them into E6/9.

Drop 2 Two hands

B5E1G♯3C♯6

5 · 1 · 3 · 6 — close position with the second voice from the top dropped an octave: wider, warmer, the standard for chord melody.

In fourths Quartal

E1B5G♯3C♯6F♯9

1 · 3 · 6 · 9 · 5 — 3, 6, 9 and 5 stacked a perfect 4th apart over the root. Open, modern, and not one note that could clash.

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