As the VD♭ major
- ii7E♭m7
- V7♭9A♭7♭9
- Imaj7D♭maj7
A♭7♭9 is the chord that wants to resolve, so ending the loop on it hands straight back to the top.
A♭7♭9 Chord: Guitar, Piano and Notes
The A♭7♭9 chord is a altered dominant seventh chord built on the root note A♭. Its notes are A♭, C, E♭, G♭ and B𝄫. It's enharmonically the same chord as G♯7♭9.
Transpose
Quality
Short answer
Dominant seventh flat nine chords sound dark and urgent. Stacking a minor ninth on a dominant seventh tightens the tension already built into the tritone, which makes the chord a strong pull toward a minor tonic.
- Notes
- A♭ · C · E♭ · G♭ · B𝄫
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · ♭7 · ♭9
- Semitones
- 0 · 4 · 7 · 10 · 13
- Note
- A♭
- Quality
- Dominant 7♭9
- Symbol
- A♭7♭9
A♭7♭9 on piano
5 notesView:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
To play A♭7♭9 on piano, place your right hand with your thumb on A♭, index finger on C, middle finger on E♭, ring finger on G♭ and little finger on B𝄫. Press the keys together and listen for an even sound. On the keyboard A♭, E♭ and G♭ are black keys and C and B𝄫 are white. B𝄫 is the key you'd normally call A. The thumb starts on a black key, so slide the whole hand a little further in, towards the fallboard. Practice moving in and out of the chord slowly, then bring in a metronome.
- A♭1
- C3
- E♭5
- G♭♭7
- B𝄫♭9
A♭7♭9 on guitar
View:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
On guitar, A♭7♭9 is commonly played with the voicing shown above. This one is a barre at fret 1: keep the index finger flat across the strings and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them. String 5 rings open.
A♭ · C · E♭ · G♭ · B𝄫
Play A♭7♭9 on the online piano
Free, in your browser: play with the mouse, your computer keyboard or a USB MIDI keyboard. No sign-up.
A♭7♭9 chord notes
Also known as G♯7♭9
| Degree | Interval | Semitones | Note | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Root | 0 | A♭(Ab) | |
| 3 | Major third | 4 | C | |
| 5 | Perfect fifth | 7 | E♭(Eb) | |
| ♭7 | Minor seventh | 10 | G♭(Gb) | |
| ♭9 | Minor ninth | 13 | B𝄫(Bbb) |
How to use the A♭7♭9 chord
The A♭7♭9 chord is built from a root, a major third, a perfect fifth, a minor seventh and a minor ninth. Start at the root A♭ and stack the intervals to get the whole chord: A♭, C, E♭, G♭ and B𝄫. The same formula gives you the chord in any other key.
Dominant seventh flat nine chords are the classic altered dominant of bebop and gospel, most often the V7 of a ii-V-i in a minor key. Gospel piano voices this chord thick under the vocal line right before it resolves.
How A♭7♭9 differs from similar chords
A♭7♭9 is A♭7 with a minor ninth, a half step above the root, where A♭9 has a major ninth. Leave out the root and the other four notes form a diminished seventh chord a major third up. That is why it pulls so hard towards a minor chord a fifth below.
Where A♭7♭9 is used
A dominant chord wants to resolve. Its home is the V of a major key - and the I of a blues, where the pull never lets up.
Questions people ask
- What notes are in the A♭7♭9 chord?
- The A♭7♭9 chord contains A♭, C, E♭, G♭ and B𝄫 (Ab, C, Eb, Gb and Bbb in plain text).
- Is the A♭7♭9 chord major or minor?
- A♭7♭9 is a altered dominant seventh chord. Dominant seventh flat nine chords sound dark and urgent. Stacking a minor ninth on a dominant seventh tightens the tension already built into the tritone, which makes the chord a strong pull toward a minor tonic.
- How do you play A♭7♭9 on piano?
- Place your fingers on A♭, C, E♭, G♭ and B𝄫 and play them together. The root usually goes to the little finger of the left hand, the upper notes to the right. On the keyboard A♭, E♭ and G♭ are black keys and C and B𝄫 are white. B𝄫 is the key you'd normally call A. The thumb starts on a black key, so slide the whole hand a little further in, towards the fallboard.
- How do you play A♭7♭9 on guitar?
- Use the fingering in the diagram above. This one is a barre at fret 1: keep the index finger flat across the strings and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them. String 5 rings open.
- What is another name for the A♭7♭9 chord?
- A♭7♭9 is enharmonically equivalent to G♯7♭9. Both chord names describe exactly the same notes, but the spelling depends on the key you are playing in.