Major 9th Chords... (maj9)

Major 9th chords are not very widely used in most of today's popular music. You will however find these chords used more frequenly in Jazz and other alternate forms of music.

Definition of a major 9 chord

A major 9 chord is a 5 note chord having a root, a major third, a perfect fifth, a major 7th and a major 9th.

The chord formula for a major 9 chord is 1 - 3 - 5 - 7 - 9

Stacking thirds: Major 3rd(3) - Minor 3rd(5) - Major 3rd(7) - Minor 3rd(9)

Example...Calculating a Gmaj9 chord

major 9th chords consist of the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th and 9th notes of the Major Scale
G chords are based on the scale of G major which consists of 1 sharp... F#. Because a 9th chord exceeds one octave (compound scale) we need to add an extra note to the existing one-octave scale (9 notes in total).
The scale reads as follows: G - A - B - C - D - E - F# - G - A
Formula = 1, 3, 5, 7, 9
Substitute notes from the scale into the formula
The Gmaj9 chord chord = G - B - D - F# - A

Major 9th Chord Table (maj9)

Chord(maj9)	A	A#	B♭	B	C	C#	D♭	D	D#	E♭	E	F	F#	G♭	G	G#	A♭
Root	A	A#	B♭	B	C	C#	D♭	D	D#	E♭	E	F	F#	G♭	G	G#	A♭
Major 3rd	C#	Cx(D)	D	D#	E	E#(F)	F	F#	Fx(G)	G	G#	A	A#	B♭	B	B#(C)	C
Perfect 5th	E	E#(F)	F	F#	G	G#	A♭	A	A#	B♭	B	C	C#	D♭	D	D#	E♭
Major 7th	G#	Gx(A)	A	A#	B	B#(C)	C	C#	Cx(D)	D	D#	E	E#(F)	F	F#	Fx(G)	G
Major 9th	B	B#(C)	C	C#	D	D#	E♭	E	E#(F)	F	F#	G	G#	A♭	A	A#	B♭

Amaj9 - Cmaj9

Free Download: major 9th chords - Part 1

Guitar Chord Charts:

C#maj9 / Dbmaj9 - Emaj9

Free Download: maj9 Chords - Part 2

Fmaj9 - G#maj9 / Abmaj9

Free Download: maj9 Chords - Part 3

Take Note:

Don't confuse a 9 chord with a maj9 chord. A ninth chord is built on a dominant or flattened 7th chord, whereas a maj9 chord is built on a major 7th chord.

Formula for a 9 chord: 1 - 3 - 5 - ♭7 - 9 (7th chord with an added 9th)
Formula for a maj9 chord: 1 - 3 - 5 - 7 - 9 (maj 7th chord with an added 9th)