F#mmaj11

F#mMaj11 is F#, A, C#, E#, G# and B, a minor major eleventh. The shape this page opens on is written 223224, lowest string first.

Note by note. F# is the root, A is the minor third, C# is the fifth, E# is the major seventh, G# is the ninth and B is the eleventh.

Also written F#mM11 or F#m(maj11). The same chord either way; which spelling you meet depends on who wrote the chart.

There are 6 common shapes for F#mMaj11 on the guitar, and 54 derived voicings in 5 families.

One note away. Change a single note of F#mMaj11 and you have F#maj11 (with one note moved), F#m11 (with one note moved) or F#mMaj9 (with one note taken away).

The common shapes, written lowest string first: 223224, xx4465, x44465, x-9-7-10-9-7, x-9-9-10-10-9, x-9-9-11-11-9.

Under the hand. None of the shapes for F#mMaj11 uses an open string, so every one of them is movable; the lowest sits at the 2nd fret. 4 of the 6 need a barre. Together they cover the neck from the 2nd fret to the 11th.

Shell. Root, third and seventh: the guide tones fix the quality, so the fifth is dropped. That is what leaves a string free, so pick a tension to put on top. F#mMaj11 has 2034xx, 2x320x, x-9-x-10-10-7, 14-x-15-14-12-x, xx4267, x-9-7-10-12-x.

Drop 2. A close-position chord with the second voice from the top lowered an octave. Sits on four adjacent strings. F#mMaj11 has xx3202, 2232xx, xx4465, x-9-9-10-10-x, 14-14-15-14-x-x, x2426x, x8747x, 5844xx.

Drop 3. The third voice from the top lowered an octave. The dropped voice becomes the bass, which is why a string is skipped. F#mMaj11 has x2x262, 2x320x, 5x446x, x8x475, 7-x-7-10-7-x, x-9-x-10-10-7, 13-x-9-11-10-x, x-12-x-11-12-13.

Rootless. The root left to the bass player. Frees a finger for a tension. F#mMaj11 has x0310x, xx3204, x2322x, xx6465, xx7667, x-11-9-10-10-x, x-x-9-10-10-9, x-12-11-10-12-x.

Open string. An open string left ringing against a fretted grip. Because it costs no finger, it sounds a note the closed shape has none left for -- a tension on top, or a pedal root underneath. Either a familiar grip with open strings added, or a shape so sparse the open strings carry the chord. These belong to their key rather than to a shape, so D, A, G and E have many and Eb a handful. F#mMaj11 has x0360x.

Tensions. A shell of F#mMaj11, root, third and seventh, leaves a string free, and the tones that belong over it are the 13 (D#).

What kind of chord this is. F#mMaj11 is a minor chord — root, minor third, fifth. minor chords on every root, and what they are for.

The common shapes and the derived voicings come from different places, and both are explained in where the chords and the theory come from.