Sixth Chords

Let’s look at how to play an F sharp 6 chord on the piano. We’ll also learn the pattern for building any other sixth chord.

What Are Sixth Chords?

Sixth chords are major chords with an added note. The added note is the sixth note of the matching major scale.

So to play a sixth chord, we’ll start with a major chord. We can build a major chord using the first, third and fifth notes of the matching major scale. Then to convert the major chord into a sixth chord, we’ll add the sixth note of the matching major scale.

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.

Get the Printable

How to Play an F Sharp 6 Chord

So to play an F sharp 6 chord, we’ll start with an F sharp major chord. We can build an F sharp major chord using the first, third and fifth notes of the F sharp major scale: F♯ – A♯ – C♯

Then we’ll add the sixth note of the F sharp major scale to the chord: D♯

So to play an F sharp 6 chord, we’ll play:

F♯ – A♯ – C♯ – D♯

We can use this pattern to play any other sixth chord. We’ll first build a major chord using the first, third and fifth notes of the matching major scale. Then we’ll add the sixth note of the scale to the chord.

Other Chord Types

Some of the other chord types we can learn are:

Major
Minor
Augmented
Diminished
Second
Minor Second
Suspended
Fifth
Minor Sixth
Seventh
Minor Seventh
Major Seventh
Ninth
Minor Ninth
Major Ninth

Conclusion

Now you know how to play an F sharp 6 chord on the piano, and you can use this knowledge to play any other sixth chord.

Using chords to learn the piano is a wonderful way to enjoy music. When we begin to see the patterns on the piano, and how we can use those patterns to build chords, we begin to see the possibilities. We realize the patterns on the piano can be repeated again and again, starting on any note, and a new world of music is suddenly at our fingertips!