Major 13th Chord (maj13) on guitar

A major 13th chord adds the ninth and thirteenth to a major 7th chord, a full, lush jazz chord.

About the Major 13th Chord

Cmaj13 here is C, E, G, B, D and A. The 11th is left out, since it clashes with the 3rd.

The 13th is the 6th an octave up. The chord holds every note of a major pentatonic plus the 7th.

On guitar, play the root, 3rd, 7th and 13th for a shape that fits under the fingers.

Intervals

• 1: Root, 0 semitones above the root
• 3: Major 3rd, 4 semitones above the root
• 5: Perfect 5th, 7 semitones above the root
• 7: Major 7th, 11 semitones above the root
• 9: 9th, 14 semitones above the root
• 13: 13th, 21 semitones above the root

Major 13th Chord charts in all 12 keys

Each chart shows the strings from the thick low E on the left to the thin high e on the right. Numbers in the dots are fingers: 1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 little, T thumb. × marks a muted string and ○ an open one. A bar across strings is a barre.

Scales to play over Cmaj13

Each of these scales, started on the root of Cmaj13, holds every note of the chord:

• C Major Scale
• C Lydian Mode
• C Lydian + b2 scale
• C Ichikosucho scale
• C Taishikicho scale
• C Bebop Major scale
• C Bebop Dominant scale
• C Nine Tone Scale

More chord types

• Dominant 11th Chord (11)
• Minor 13th Chord (m13)
• All chord types