Skip to content

Guitar chords · Major 9th

D♭maj9 chord on guitar (Dbmaj9)

D♭maj9 (D♭ major 9th) has five notes: D♭, F, A♭, C and E♭, the , 3, 5, 7 and 9.

Shapes

How to play D♭maj9

Strum a shape to hear it, or pick it one string at a time. R marks the ; the other numbers are the chord tones.

D♭maj9 has no common . Play it as the A shape at 4 or the E shape at fret 9. A keeps its fingering anywhere on the neck: slide it up or down and the , on the lowest played string, names the chord.

  • A shape · fret 4

    3fr××R379D♭FCE♭
  • E shape · fret 9

    9fr×R7359D♭CFA♭E♭
Name a shape you're holding: the chord finder

Notes and formula

What makes D♭maj9 major 9th

A major 9th chord adds the 9th to a major . It is even softer and more open than maj7, a favourite of neo-soul, jazz and ballads. Keep the 3rd, the 7th and the 9th; drop the 5th first.

  • 1Root: the note the chord is named after. Keep it.
  • 3Essential: makes the chord what it is. Never drop it.
  • 5Optional: drop it first when you run out of fingers.

The 3rd, the 7th and the 9th make D♭maj9 a major 9th chord; you can leave out the 5th.

  1. D♭Rroot
  2. F3essential
  3. A♭5optional
  4. C7essential
  5. E♭9essential
EADGBE0135791215D♭D♭D♭D♭D♭D♭D♭FA♭CE♭FCE♭FA♭CE♭FA♭CE♭FA♭CE♭FA♭CE♭FA♭CFA♭CE♭F
  • D♭, the root
  • Other chord tones

D♭maj9 and C♯maj9 are the same chord with two names: same , same sound. Which one you see depends on the key the song is written in.

Keys

Keys with D♭maj9

D♭maj9 belongs to four keys: D♭ major (Imaj9), A♭ major (IVmaj9), B♭ minor (IIImaj9) and F minor (VImaj9).

Numerals follow the key's own scale, so III, VI and VII in a minor key are its own major chords. A ♭ or ♯ in front marks a chord from outside the key. How Roman numerals work

Slash chords

D♭maj9 over another bass note

A keeps D♭maj9 on top and puts another note in the bass: the letter after the slash is the lowest note you play.

  • D♭maj9/F

    D♭maj9 with its 3rd, F, in the bass.

  • D♭maj9/A♭

    D♭maj9 with its 5th, A♭, in the bass.

  • D♭maj9/C

    D♭maj9 with its 7th, C, in the bass.

Questions

D♭maj9, in short

What notes are in the D♭maj9 chord?
D♭maj9 (D♭ major 9th) has five notes: D♭, F, A♭, C and E♭, the , 3, 5, 7 and 9.
How do you play D♭maj9 on guitar?
D♭maj9 has no common . Play it as the A shape at 4 or the E shape at fret 9.
What key is D♭maj9 in?
D♭maj9 belongs to four keys: D♭ major (Imaj9), A♭ major (IVmaj9), B♭ minor (IIImaj9) and F minor (VImaj9).
Is D♭maj9 the same as C♯maj9?
Yes: same frets, same sound, different name. D♭maj9 is the spelling in D♭ major, A♭ major, B♭ minor and F minor; C♯maj9 only in C♯ major and A♯ minor, which most players write as D♭ major and B♭ minor.
All guitar chords