Arpeggio · A6 · Piano
The A6 arpeggio is A – C♯ – E – F♯ — chord tones 1 3 5 6. A6 is a tonic alternative to maj7, especially on the last chord of a tune; its sound is open, classic, swing-era. Below, every A, C♯, E, F♯ on the two-octave keyboard is marked, with the root in gold. Press play to hear a one-octave arpeggio, or tap any note.
Visualizer
Piano
Guitar · standard tuning
Play loops the arpeggio up and down one octave (switch Loop off for a single pass). Tap any marked note to hear it. “Show” switches or combines the fretboard and keyboard; “Sound” picks the instrument you hear. Audio is synthesized in the browser.
Reference
| Chord tone | Note | Interval from A |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | A | unison (0 semitones) |
| 3 | C♯ | major 3rd (4 semitones) |
| 5 | E | perfect 5th (7 semitones) |
| 6 | F♯ | major 6th (9 semitones) |
Goes with: A Major (Ionian) (A B C♯ D E F♯ G♯). Voicings: A6 voicings on piano.
Common questions
A – C♯ – E – F♯. As chord tones: 1 3 5 6. Played one after another instead of together, that is the arpeggio.
A6 is a tonic alternative to maj7, especially on the last chord of a tune. Its character is open, classic, swing-era.
A Major (A B C♯ D E F♯ G♯) — the arpeggio is the skeleton of that scale, so practise them together.
Play A – C♯ – E – F♯ ascending from A, then descend; then start from each chord tone in turn (inversions) so your hand knows the shape from any note.
Keep going
Same arpeggio on guitar · Major 6th hub · chord-scale theory.
Other arpeggios from A