F9 piano chord — the keys, the inversions, the theory

F9 is a ninth chord built from F, A, C, Eb, G. Below: the keys to press, every inversion with its own diagram, the intervals it is made of, the keys whose scale contains it, and a progression that actually uses it. Press any diagram to hear it.

F9

F · A · C · Eb · G

Piano keyboardC4C5

Semitones above the root: 0 – 4 – 7 – 10 – 14

A major third with a flattened seventh above it: unstable on purpose, and it wants to resolve a fourth up.

Inversions of F9

  • Root position

    F · A · C · Eb · G · bass F

  • Inversion 1

    A · C · Eb · F · G · bass A

  • Inversion 2

    C · Eb · F · G · A · bass C

  • Inversion 3

    Eb · F · G · A · C · bass Eb

Same chord, different note at the bottom. Press a diagram to hear it — inversions are how you move between chords without jumping your hand across the keyboard.

Keys that contain F9

  • BbV

In Bb it does this job: I – V – vi – IV

  1. Bb
  2. F9
  3. Gm
  4. Eb

Questions