Major Ninth Chords
Let’s look at how to play a Bmaj9 (B major ninth) chord on the piano. We’ll also learn the pattern for building any other major ninth chord.
What Are Major Ninth Chords?
Major ninth chords are major chords with two added notes. The added notes are the seventh and ninth notes of the matching major scale.
So to build a major ninth chord, we’ll start by building a major chord. Major chords are built using the first, third and fifth notes of the matching major scale (learn how to build a major scale here).
Then we’ll add the seventh note of the matching major scale to the chord.
Since scales only have eight notes, to add the ninth note we’ll repeat the scale into the next octave. The ninth note is the same as the second note of the scale, but one octave up.
Chord Types Printable
Learn to play 17 types of piano chords using 12 different root notes with this 35-page PDF! Chords are sorted both by their root note and type.
How to Play a Bmaj9 Chord
Now let’s build a Bmaj9 chord. We’ll first build a B major chord, using the first, third and fifth notes of the B major scale: B – D♯ – F♯
Then we’ll add the seventh note of the B major scale to the chord: A♯
Then we’ll add the ninth note by repeating the scale into the next octave: C♯
So to play a Bmaj9 chord, we’ll play:
B – D♯ – F♯ – A♯ – C♯
We can use this pattern to build any other major ninth chord! We’ll first build a major chord, then add the seventh note of the matching major scale to the chord, then repeat the scale into the next octave to find the ninth.
Fingering
You probably can’t reach all these notes with your right hand, so one option is to play the B with your left hand, and play the D♯ – F♯ – A♯ – C♯ with your right hand using fingers 1 – 2 – 3 – 5 (thumbs are 1’s). You could also re-arrange the right-hand notes and play them this way: C♯ – D♯ – F♯ – A♯
Other Chord Types
Some other chord types you can learn are:
Major
Minor
Augmented
Diminished
Second
Minor Second
Suspended
Fifth
Sixth
Minor Sixth
Seventh
Minor Seventh
Major Seventh
Ninth
Minor Ninth
Conclusion
Now you know how to play a Bmaj9 chord on the piano, and you can use this knowledge to build any other major ninth chord!
Using chords to learn the piano is a great way to enjoy music!
Hello Ms. Julie Swihart..! After greeting you, I want to thank you for the support that every two weeks or whenever you can, you give us through those very simple but very profound explanations because I feel that they come with all the love of someone who wants to give of themselves to encourage us. those people, like me, who without resources want to acquire and develop the hidden talent to be able to interact with this wonderful instrument, such as the Piano. Thank you very much and may our Creator Father bless you always, for all eternity…!!!
What an encouraging comment, thank you so much! I appreciate your words and I’m so glad you’re finding the content useful as you pursue your passion for learning the piano!