# F Major 6th piano chord (F6) F6 contains F, A, C and D. A major triad with the sixth added on top. Every note is a white key. - Canonical page: https://piano.org/chords/major-6th/f/ - Entity: chord:major-6th:f - Notes: F A C D - Formula: 1 3 5 6 - Intervals from root: P1, M3, P5, M6 - Interval stack (semitones): 4 3 2 - Also written: F6, F6, F major 6th - Parameters: A440, 12-TET, 165 mm octave, spans centre to centre ## Construction | Degree | Note | Interval from root | Semitones | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | F | Perfect unison | 0 | | 3 | A | Major third | 4 | | 5 | C | Perfect fifth | 7 | | 6 | D | Major sixth | 9 | ## Fingering Rest your right hand over the notes with finger 1 on F, finger 2 on A, finger 3 on C, finger 5 on D. The left hand mirrors it. Right hand 1-2-3-5, left hand 5-3-2-1. Source: piano.org fingering method v1. ## Inversions | Position | Bass | Notes in order | Figured bass | Span | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Root position | F | F3 A3 C4 D4 | 7 | 9 st, 124 mm | | First inversion (F6/A) | A | A3 C4 D4 F4 | 6/5 | 8 st, 110 mm | | Second inversion (F6/C) | C | C4 D4 F4 A4 | 4/3 | 9 st, 124 mm | | Third inversion (F6/D) | D | D4 F4 A4 C5 | 4/2 | 10 st, 138 mm | ## Voicings (10) | Voicing | Notes | Span | Relation | Omits or adds | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Close, root position | F3 A3 C4 D4 | 9 st, 124 mm | identical | none | | Close, first inversion | A3 C4 D4 F4 | 8 st, 110 mm | identical | none | | Close, second inversion | C4 D4 F4 A4 | 9 st, 124 mm | identical | none | | Close, third inversion | D4 F4 A4 C5 | 10 st, 138 mm | identical | none | | Drop 2 | C3 F3 A3 D4 | 14 st, 193 mm | identical | none | | Drop 3 | A2 F3 C4 D4 | 17 st, 234 mm | identical | none | | Drop 2 and 4 | F2 C3 A3 D4 | 21 st, 289 mm | identical | none | | Shell, root 6 3 | F2 D3 A3 | 16 st, 220 mm | subset | omits C | | Guide tones, 3 and 6 | A3 D4 | 5 st, 69 mm | subset | omits F and C | | Rootless close | A3 C4 D4 | 5 st, 69 mm | subset | omits F | ## One-edit neighbors | Becomes | Edit | Changes | Common tones | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | F | 1 3 5 | drops D | 3 | | Fmaj7 | 1 3 5 7 | D becomes E | 3 | | F7 | 1 3 5 ♭7 | D becomes E♭ | 3 | | Fm6 | 1 ♭3 5 6 | A becomes A♭ | 3 | | Fadd9 | 1 3 5 9 | D becomes G | 3 | | Fmaj9 | 1 3 5 7 9 | D becomes E, G | 3 | | F9 | 1 3 5 ♭7 9 | D becomes E♭, G | 3 | | Fm | 1 ♭3 5 | A, D becomes A♭ | 2 | | Faug | 1 3 ♯5 | C, D becomes C♯ | 2 | | Fsus2 | 1 2 5 | A, D becomes G | 2 | | Fsus4 | 1 4 5 | A, D becomes B♭ | 2 | | Fm7 | 1 ♭3 5 ♭7 | A, D becomes A♭, E♭ | 2 | ## Set theory - Absolute pitch classes: {5, 9, 0, 2} - Relative pitch classes: [0, 4, 7, 9] - Normal order: [9, 0, 2, 5] - Prime form: (0358) - Forte number: 4-26 - Interval vector: <012120> ## Frequencies (close root position) | Note | MIDI | Frequency | | --- | --- | --- | | F3 | 53 | 174.61 Hz | | A3 | 57 | 220.00 Hz | | C4 | 60 | 261.63 Hz | | D4 | 62 | 293.66 Hz | ## Questions and answers ### What notes are in F6? F6 contains F, A, C and D. The formula is 1, 3, 5, 6. ### How do you play F6 on piano? Play F, A, C and D together. Right hand fingers 1, 2, 3, 5; left hand 5, 3, 2, 1. Every note is a white key. ### What are the inversions of F6? 4 positions: root position F A C D, F6/A, F6/C, F6/D. ### What is the difference between F6 and F? Drops D. 3 of the notes are shared. ### What is an easy F6 for small hands? The guide tones, 3 and 6 voicing, A3 D4, spans 5 semitones or about 69 mm. ### What are the frequencies of F6? From F3 at A440 in 12-TET: 174.61, 220.00, 261.63, 293.66 Hz. ### What is the set class of F6? Prime form (0358), Forte 4-26, interval vector <012120>. ### How do I transpose F6 to another key? Keep the 1, 3, 5, 6 formula on the new root. C6 is C, E, G, A; C♯6 is C♯, E♯, G♯, A♯. ## Provenance Every derived value above is computed by the piano.org theory kernel from the root, the quality and the stated parameters. Nothing is hand-entered per chord. Machine record: https://piano.org/api/knowledge/v1/entities/chord:major-6th:f Last reviewed: 2026-08-12