Chord Shapes

Dominant 9th Sharp 11th

Intervals: 1-3-5-b7-9-#11. Essentially a Lydian dominant 7#11 chord extended with a 9th. The natural 9 keeps the sound open and consonant, while the #11 supplies the characteristic raised 4th shimmer. This sonority appears frequently as a static vamp in fusion and modal jazz (for example, an E9#11 pedal) and as a colouristic V chord that does not need to resolve immediately. When it does resolve, the #11 usually moves by semitone to the 5th or 3rd of the next chord. Treat the underlying scale as Lydian dominant and voice the #11 in the upper register for clarity.