A7♯9 (the "Hendrix chord")

5-note dominant 7th sharp 9 on AA, C, C♯, E, G.

Press to hear the chord strummed low to high.

The famous "Hendrix chord" — a dominant seventh carrying both the major third and the sharp ninth (an enharmonic minor third), major and minor at once.

The notes

Pitches taken from the first fingering below — click any note to open its frequency page.

Interval formula

DegreeNoteWhat it is
1Aroot
♯9Csharp ninth
3C♯major third
5Eperfect fifth
♭7Gflat seventh (dominant)

The formula reads in semitones above the root (A): 1, ♯9, 3, 5, ♭7. A voicing may leave a tone out — often the fifth — but never adds one from outside this set.

Guitar fingerings · 4

5fr131244
from fret 5
6fr2134
from fret 6
8fr4213
from fret 8
11fr2134
from fret 11

Ukulele fingerings · 4

13
open position
3fr4213
from fret 3
3fr4211
from fret 3
6fr1243
from fret 6

Read a diagram top-down: the thick bar is the nut, dots are where to press (the number is which finger), means play the open string, means don't play it. A bar across strings is a barre.

Other A chords

7♯9 (the "Hendrix chord") chords on every root