C minor eleventh
How to play Cm11 — Minor eleventh
Cm11 (Minor eleventh)C · E♭ · G · B♭ · D · F
Guitar samples: Acoustic guitar — University of Iowa (via tonejs-instruments, CC-BY 3.0)
C minor eleventh — notes and structure
The Cm11 chord extends the minor chord through the eleventh — open and modal.
The Cm11 minor eleventh consists of the notes C, E♭, G, B♭, D, F. Its interval structure is R–3–5–7–9–11 — the root, then each chord tone stacked above it. This is the same chord you see in the interactive finder above, drawn on the guitar fretboard with the root circled and every chord tone labelled.
Cm11 stacks a minor third (E♭), a perfect fifth (G), a minor seventh (B♭), a ninth (D) and an eleventh (F) above the root C.
The finder shows 2 ways to play Cm11 — an open-position shape reaching up to the 8th fret. 1 of them use a barre.
What key is Cm11 in?
Every note of Cm11 belongs to the scales below, so the chord sounds at home in each of these keys — the roman numeral is the degree it sits on.
- B♭ major — the ii chord
- E♭ major — the vi chord
- G minor — the iv chord
- C minor — the i chord
Chords that go with Cm11
In B♭ major, the chords built on the first, fourth and fifth degrees carry most songs — put Cm11 next to these:
Frequently asked questions
- What notes are in the C minor eleventh chord?
- The Cm11 chord contains the notes C, E♭, G, B♭, D, F. It extends the minor chord through the eleventh — open and modal.
- How many ways can you play Cm11 on guitar?
- 2 voicings are shown on this page — from open position up the neck — each with its own fingering diagram and audio.
- Is Cm11 a hard chord to play?
- Some voicings use a barre, which takes practice, but the chord is very playable once that shape is comfortable.
- What key does Cm11 belong to?
- Cm11 fits B♭ major (where it is the ii chord), E♭ major (where it is the vi chord), G minor (where it is the iv chord) — every note of the chord is in those scales.