D♯6 Chord: Guitar, Piano and Notes
The D♯6 chord is a major sixth chord built on the root note D♯. Its notes are D♯, F𝄪, A♯ and B♯. It's enharmonically the same chord as E♭6.
Major sixth chords sound bright and settled without the pull of a seventh. Adding a major sixth to a major triad gives a warm, slightly retro colour that filled swing bands and fifties pop, and it still ends a song beautifully.
- Notes
- D♯ · F𝄪 · A♯ · B♯
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · 6
- Semitones
- 0 · 4 · 7 · 9
- Note
- D♯
- Quality
- Major 6
- Symbol
- D♯6
D♯6 on piano
4 notes
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
To play D♯6 on piano, place your right hand with your thumb on D♯, index finger on F𝄪, middle finger on A♯ and little finger on B♯. Press the keys together and listen for an even sound. On the keyboard D♯ and A♯ are black keys and F𝄪 and B♯ are white, the keys you'd normally call G and C. 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.
- D♯1
- F𝄪3
- A♯5
- B♯6
D♯6 on guitar
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
On guitar, D♯6 is commonly played with the voicing shown above. This one is a barre at fret 1: 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 strings 6 and 5.
D♯ · F𝄪 · A♯ · B♯
Play D♯6 on the online piano
Free, in your browser: play with the mouse, your computer keyboard or a USB MIDI keyboard. No sign-up.
D♯6 chord notes
Also known as E♭6
| Degree | Interval | Semitones | Note | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Root | 0 | D♯(D#) | |
| 3 | Major third | 4 | F𝄪(F##) | |
| 5 | Perfect fifth | 7 | A♯(A#) | |
| 6 | Major sixth | 9 | B♯(B#) |
How to use the D♯6 chord
The D♯6 chord is built from a root, a major third, a perfect fifth and a major sixth. Start at the root D♯ and stack the intervals to get the whole chord: D♯, F𝄪, A♯ and B♯. The same formula gives you the chord in any other key.
Major sixth chords work as a softer substitute for a major triad, especially as a final chord where a maj7 would sound too jazzy. Swing, rockabilly, bossa nova and country all lean on them.
How D♯6 differs from similar chords
D♯6 and D♯maj7 both add one note to D♯, but the sixth sits a whole step below the major seventh and makes no dissonance with the root. D♯6 has exactly the same notes as the minor seventh chord a minor third below it, so the bass note decides which of the two you hear.
Where D♯6 is used
No progression is shown for this spelling
Every key D♯6 would have a function in has a tonic that needs a double accidental, which is not a key this library teaches. The enharmonic spelling carries the same chord in a key that exists.
Questions people ask
- What notes are in the D♯6 chord?
- The D♯6 chord contains D♯, F𝄪, A♯ and B♯ (D#, F##, A# and B# in plain text).
- Is the D♯6 chord major or minor?
- D♯6 is a major sixth chord. Major sixth chords sound bright and settled without the pull of a seventh. Adding a major sixth to a major triad gives a warm, slightly retro colour that filled swing bands and fifties pop, and it still ends a song beautifully.
- How do you play D♯6 on piano?
- Place your fingers on D♯, F𝄪, A♯ and B♯ 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 D♯ and A♯ are black keys and F𝄪 and B♯ are white, the keys you'd normally call G and C. The thumb starts on a black key, so slide the whole hand a little further in, towards the fallboard.
- How do you play D♯6 on guitar?
- Use the fingering in the diagram above. This one is a barre at fret 1: 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 strings 6 and 5.
- What is another name for the D♯6 chord?
- D♯6 is enharmonically equivalent to E♭6. Both chord names describe exactly the same notes, but the spelling depends on the key you are playing in.