Interval · 9 half steps
Major sixth
A major sixth is 9 half steps. From C, a major sixth up is A.
- Half steps
- 9
- Short name
- M6
- Guitar frets
- 9
How it sounds
Warm and sweet, wider than a fifth but without its hollowness. Add it to a major chord and you get the soft, old-fashioned sixth chord.
Songs to remember it by
Hum the start of My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean or the NBC chimes. The jump between the first two notes is a major sixth. Reference songs get you started; after a while you will hear the interval itself.
On the guitar
Two strings higher, 1 fret back. With the lower note on the low E or A string in standard tuning; shapes that cross from the G string to the B string move up one fret.
A major sixth up from every note
| From | Up a major sixth | Hear it |
|---|---|---|
| C | A | |
| D♭ | B♭ | |
| D | B | |
| E♭ | C | |
| E | C♯ | |
| F | D | |
| F♯ | D♯ | |
| G | E | |
| A♭ | F | |
| A | F♯ | |
| B♭ | G | |
| B | G♯ |
This interval is one of the answers in the game’s “How far apart?” round.