F thirteenth, sharp eleven

F13(♯11)

Also written F13#11

NotesF · A · C · E♭ · G · B · D
Formula1 · 3 · 5 · ♭7 · 9 · ♯11 · 13
F1A3C5G9B♯11D13E♭♭7
All its notes, from the root

Everything the lydian dominant has: 9, ♯11 and 13. Those three tensions form a G major triad — “upper structure II” — so pianists play it as G over F7.

How pianists voice F13(♯11)

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

F1A3E♭♭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

A3D13G9E♭♭7

3 · 13 · ♭7 · 9 — no root: the bass player has it. The left-hand voicing of modern jazz piano.

Rootless B From the 7th

G9A3D13E♭♭7

♭7 · 9 · 3 · 13 — the other half of the pair. A and B alternate through a ii–V–I so the hand barely moves. Without F underneath, the same keys read as E♭maj7(♯11) — the bass turns them into F13(♯11).

Drop 2 Two hands

D13F1A3E♭♭7

13 · 1 · 3 · ♭7 — close position with the second voice from the top dropped an octave: wider, warmer, the standard for chord melody.

Upper structure II Triad over shell

F1A3G9B♯11D13E♭♭7

1 · 3 · ♭7 · 9 · ♯11 · 13 — a G major triad in the right hand (9, ♯11 and 13) over the root, 3rd and ♭7 in the left. One familiar shape, all the tension.

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