As a minor tonicC♯ minor
The natural-minor loop - every chord is drawn from the key's own seven notes.
C♯m6 Chord: Guitar, Piano and Notes
The C♯m6 chord is a minor sixth chord built on the root note C♯. Its notes are C♯, E, G♯ and A♯. It's enharmonically the same chord as D♭m6.
Transpose
Quality
Short answer
Minor sixth chords are darker than a plain minor triad but never sour. A major sixth sitting over a minor third gives them a wistful, cinematic quality that turns up in bossa nova, French chanson and film noir scores.
- Notes
- C♯ · E · G♯ · A♯
- Formula
- 1 · ♭3 · 5 · 6
- Semitones
- 0 · 3 · 7 · 9
- Note
- C♯
- Quality
- Minor 6
- Symbol
- C♯m6
C♯m6 on piano
4 notesView:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
To play C♯m6 on piano, place your right hand with your thumb on C♯, index finger on E, middle finger on G♯ and little finger on A♯. Press the keys together and listen for an even sound. On the keyboard C♯, G♯ and A♯ are black keys and E is white. The thumb starts on a black key, so slide the whole hand a little further in, towards the fallboard. Practice moving in and out of the chord slowly, then bring in a metronome.
- C♯1
- E♭3
- G♯5
- A♯6
C♯m6 on guitar
View:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
On guitar, C♯m6 is commonly played with the voicing shown above. This one is a barre at fret 2: keep the index finger flat across the strings and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them. Don't play string 6.
C♯ · E · G♯ · A♯
Play C♯m6 on the online piano
Free, in your browser: play with the mouse, your computer keyboard or a USB MIDI keyboard. No sign-up.
C♯m6 chord notes
Also known as D♭m6
| Degree | Interval | Semitones | Note | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Root | 0 | C♯(C#) | |
| ♭3 | Minor third | 3 | E | |
| 5 | Perfect fifth | 7 | G♯(G#) | |
| 6 | Major sixth | 9 | A♯(A#) |
How to use the C♯m6 chord
The C♯m6 chord is built from a root, a minor third, a perfect fifth and a major sixth. Start at the root C♯ and stack the intervals to get the whole chord: C♯, E, G♯ and A♯. The same formula gives you the chord in any other key.
Minor sixth chords act as the iv chord in a major key or as the tonic of a Dorian passage, and they are a staple of jazz turnarounds. They also make a striking substitute for a plain minor chord at a cadence.
How C♯m6 differs from similar chords
C♯m6 adds a major sixth to C♯m, where C♯m7 adds a minor seventh a half step higher. That major sixth forms a tritone with the minor third, which gives the chord its bittersweet tension. The same four notes spell the half-diminished chord built on its sixth.
Where C♯m6 is used
A minor chord works as the tonic of its own key, and as the vi or the ii of a major one. Each progression below is written in the key its numerals name.
Questions people ask
- What notes are in the C♯m6 chord?
- The C♯m6 chord contains C♯, E, G♯ and A♯ (C#, E, G# and A# in plain text).
- Is the C♯m6 chord major or minor?
- C♯m6 is a minor sixth chord. Minor sixth chords are darker than a plain minor triad but never sour. A major sixth sitting over a minor third gives them a wistful, cinematic quality that turns up in bossa nova, French chanson and film noir scores.
- How do you play C♯m6 on piano?
- Place your fingers on C♯, E, G♯ and A♯ and play them together. The root usually goes to the little finger of the left hand, the upper notes to the right. On the keyboard C♯, G♯ and A♯ are black keys and E is white. The thumb starts on a black key, so slide the whole hand a little further in, towards the fallboard.
- How do you play C♯m6 on guitar?
- Use the fingering in the diagram above. This one is a barre at fret 2: keep the index finger flat across the strings and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them. Don't play string 6.
- What is another name for the C♯m6 chord?
- C♯m6 is enharmonically equivalent to D♭m6. Both chord names describe exactly the same notes, but the spelling depends on the key you are playing in.