C9#5 guitar chord — root mapping, fingerings, arpeggios, triads, pentatonic, scales

The whole-tone scale contains six distinct notes separated entirely by whole steps. It has no perfect 5th, half steps or leading tone, so ordinary major-minor logic largely disappears. The scale fits 7#5 and 9#5 chords, allows identical patterns to move by whole step, and creates a characteristic ambiguous sound. Because of its symmetry, only two distinct whole-tone collections exist.

The Whole Tone scale is a symmetrical six-note scale built entirely from whole steps. It contains no semitones, perfect 5th, or conventional leading tone. The major 3rd preserves a major framework, #5 produces an augmented triad, and b7 allows the scale to function over a dominant seventh chord. Because every adjacent note is separated by the same interval, no degree inherently stands out above the others, so the tonal center is weak and normally established by the bass, chord, or resolution. Whole Tone has no single defining degree in the ordinary modal sense; over a dominant chord, its characteristic profile comes from the combination of 3, #4, #5, and b7.

The function of each degree is determined relative to the selected chord root. Because the scale is symmetrical, any of its notes can become a new center without changing the interval structure.

1 — chord root: establishes the center that the symmetrical scale itself expresses only weakly.

2 — major 2nd / 9th: functions as a natural 9 over a dominant seventh chord.

3 — major 3rd: establishes the major or dominant chord quality and forms the chord’s essential tritone with b7.

#4 — augmented 4th / diminished 5th: may be labeled #11 or b5 depending on the chord and voice leading. The natural perfect 4th 4 is absent.

#5 — augmented 5th: belongs to the augmented triad 1 3 #5 and the dominant seventh chord 7#5. It may be interpreted enharmonically as b13. The perfect 5th 5 is absent.

b7—minor 7th: combines with 1 and 3 to form the foundation of a dominant seventh chord. It lies a whole tone below the octave and does not function as a leading tone.

Whole Tone contains six rather than seven degrees, so its harmonization differs from that of the diatonic modes. Selecting every other scale tone produces only augmented triads:

I+, II+, III+, #IV+, #V+, bVII+.

Because of the scale’s symmetry, these six triads reduce to only two distinct pitch collections. In C Whole Tone, they are C–E–G# and D–F#–A#; triads rooted on the remaining degrees are inversions or enharmonic reinterpretations of these two structures.

A conventional sequence of four-note seventh chords cannot be produced by continually selecting every other degree: after three selected tones, the six-note scale returns to the original pitch class. Whole Tone therefore has no standard series of diatonic seventh chords comparable to the harmonization of a seven-note scale.

Its practically important chord structures include:

7#5 — 1 3 #5 b7;

7b5 — 1 3 b5 b7, with b5 enharmonically equivalent to #4;

9#5 — 1 2 3 #5 b7;

9b5 — 1 2 3 b5 b7;

9#5#11 — 1 2 3 #4 #5 b7, containing the complete scale.

C Whole Tone contains C D E F# G# Bb and supports Caug, C7#5, C7b5, C9#5, C9b5, and C9#5#11.

Whole Tone is used primarily over augmented triads and dominant seventh chords with an altered 5th. Over 7#5, degrees 1 3 #5 b7 exactly match the chord tones, while 2 and #4 add the natural 9 and #11. For example, C Whole Tone is used over C7#5 or C9#5.

The scale also fits 7b5 and 9b5, since it contains 1, 3, b5, b7, and a natural 9. Its simultaneous inclusion of #4/b5 and #5 makes it suitable for dominant chords whose 5th is altered or intentionally ambiguous.

In functional harmony, Whole Tone is often applied to a V7 chord with an augmented 5th before it resolves to the tonic. G Whole Tone, for example, may be used over G7#5–Cmaj7. The dominant’s major 3rd and minor 7th preserve the resolution toward C, while the remaining tones increase the chromatic tension.

An augmented triad alone does not uniquely determine the scale. Whole Tone is appropriate when the harmony supports a natural 9, #11, and b7; when the chord uses a major 7th instead of b7, Lydian Augmented or Ionian Augmented may be more accurate.

Because of its absence of semitones, symmetry, and weak tonal center, the scale is also used in nonfunctional harmony, twentieth- and twenty-first-century music, jazz, and screen music to create a floating, ambiguous, or transitional sound.

Whole Tone contains no natural 5, natural 13, b9, or #9. When these notes are explicitly present in the chord or melody, another dominant scale normally represents the harmony more accurately.

In twelve-tone equal temperament, there are only two distinct whole-tone collections:

C D E F# G# A#;

C# D# F G A B.

Transposing the scale by a whole step does not create a new pitch collection; it only changes the ordering of the same six notes. Whole Tone therefore has no separate modes: beginning on any scale degree produces the same interval formula, W W W W W W.

The scale is closely related to the augmented triad 1 3 #5. The complete collection can be represented as two augmented triads separated by a whole step: 1 3 #5 and 2 #4 b7.

Altered has the formula 1 b2 #2 3 b5 #5 b7. It shares 1, 3, b5, #5, and b7 with Whole Tone, but uses b9 and #9 instead of a natural 9.

Lydian Dominant has the formula 1 2 3 #4 5 6 b7. It shares 1, 2, 3, #4, and b7 with Whole Tone, but retains a perfect 5th and natural 13 instead of #5.

Lydian Augmented has the formula 1 2 3 #4 #5 6 7. It shares its first five tones with Whole Tone, but uses a natural 6 and major 7 instead of b7. It therefore corresponds to an augmented major seventh chord, while Whole Tone is associated primarily with an augmented dominant chord.

Over 7#5, begin with the chord tones 1 3 #5 b7. The major 3rd and minor 7th preserve the dominant quality, while #5 identifies the augmented 5th. Use the natural 2 as the 9, and #4 as the #11 or b5.

A useful way to organize all six pitches is through two augmented triads separated by a whole step. Over C7#5, a Caug arpeggio supplies 1 3 #5, while Daug supplies 9 #11 b7. Alternating and connecting these arpeggios exposes the complete scale without reducing the line to a mechanical scale run.

Symmetrical figures can be transposed upward or downward by a whole step and remain inside the same scale. Patterns such as 1–2–3–#4, 3–#4–#5–b7, and their transpositions clearly reveal the even structure, but do little by themselves to establish the root.

To make the intended chord center audible, return regularly to 1, 3, #5, and b7, place them on strong beats, and connect the line to the resolution of the following chord. Otherwise, any other scale tone may begin to sound like an equally valid center.

In G7#5–Cmaj7, B, the major 3rd of G7, normally rises to C, while F, its minor 7th, falls to E. D# (#5 or b13) may rise to E, while C# (#11 or b5) may move to C or D.

Over 7b5, emphasize 1 3 b5 b7, using #5 as an additional altered tension only when the melody and voicing support it. Over 7#5, the primary altered 5th is #5, while #4/b5 functions as an additional color.

Do not sustain a natural perfect 5th or natural 13, since neither belongs to the scale. When the chord requires b9 and #9, use Altered; when it contains a natural 5 and 13 together with a #11, Lydian Dominant is more accurate.

Whole Tone is a symmetrical six-note scale made entirely of whole steps: 1 2 3 #4 #5 b7. It contains no semitones, perfect 5th, or strong inherent tonal center. Degrees 1 3 #5 form an augmented triad, while adding b7 produces the foundation of a 7#5 dominant chord. Its 2 and #4 also supply a natural 9 and #11. Its principal applications are augmented triads, 7#5 and 7b5 dominant chords, symmetrical nonfunctional harmony, and transitional passages with an intentionally ambiguous center.