Package leaflet · Information for the musician · Chord
A Minor Eleventh Chord (Am11)
Open, cool and modern. A minor seventh chord extended with the ninth and eleventh, creating a spacious, fourths-based sound.
- Am11
- 6 notes
- x00010
1Composition: what it contains
A – C – E – G – B – D
- Symbol
- Am11
- Also written
- Am11, Amin11, A-11, Ami11
- Formula
- 1 ♭3 5 ♭7 9 11
| Degree | Note | Interval | Semitones |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A | unison | 0 |
| ♭3 | C | minor third | 3 |
| 5 | E | perfect fifth | 7 |
| ♭7 | G | minor seventh | 10 |
| 9 | B | major ninth | 14 |
| 11 | D | perfect eleventh | 17 |
2Appearance: diagrams and sound
On the guitar
x00010open position
535433fret 3
555555fret 5
x-12-10-12-10-10fret 10
x-12-12-12-13-12fret 12On the ukulele
2233fret 2
5755fret 5
7-9-8-10fret 7On the piano
On the staff
On bass and as an arpeggio
3Indications: what it is used for
Used in modal jazz, fusion, neo-soul, funk, R&B and ambient, especially on Dorian or Aeolian minor vamps, and as ii11 in a ii–V–I. Because the eleventh does not clash with the minor third, all six chord tones can be used. It is often voiced in fourths (quartal voicings), which gives a modern, open colour typical of modal jazz piano. Dorian is the ideal scale over it. Guitarists often voice it with open strings for a ringing ambient pad.
4Dosage: how to practise it
On piano, practise quartal voicings (stacked fourths) in the right hand over the root in the left, and rootless voicings ♭3-♭7-9-11. On guitar, learn the shape rooted on the fifth string and the shape rooted on the sixth string with the fifth string muted, plus four-string quartal shapes. Practise a modal vamp of two minor eleventh chords a whole step apart at 80–110 BPM. Five to ten minutes daily. Improvise with Dorian over the chord.
5Warnings and common mistakes
Do not confuse m11 with the dominant 11 chord, where the major third clashes with the eleventh. With all six notes voiced close together the chord sounds muddy; omit the fifth or the root. The eleventh is a perfect fourth an octave up, not an augmented fourth. Some charts write 'm7(11)'; it is the same chord, but sometimes without the ninth.
6Interactions with chords, scales and keys
Inversions
- Inversion 1 · Am11/C · C – E – G – B – D – A
- Inversion 2 · Am11/E · E – G – B – D – A – C
- Inversion 3 · Am11/G · G – B – D – A – C – E
- Inversion 4 · Am11/B · B – D – A – C – E – G
- Inversion 5 · Am11/D · D – A – C – E – G – B
Scales to play over Am11
7Other presentations available
The same chord from every note
Cm11 C♯m11 Dm11 E♭m11 Em11 Fm11 F♯m11 Gm11 A♭m11 B♭m11 Bm11
Other chords on A
A Am Adim Aaug Asus2 Asus4 A5 A6 Am6 A7 Amaj7 Am7 Am7♭5 Adim7 Am(maj7) A7sus4 Aadd9 Am(add9) A6/9 A9 Amaj9 Am9 A11 A13 A7♭9 A7♯9 A7♯5 A7♭5
Read this leaflet carefully before playing. Keep it near your instrument. Free to use, print and share for personal and educational use.