As the ii in a ii-V-IG♭ major
- ii7A♭m7
- V7D♭7
- Imaj7G♭maj7
The standard cadence: A♭m7 carries the subdominant function before the dominant arrives.
A♭m7 Chord: Guitar, Piano and Notes
The A♭m7 chord is a minor seventh chord built on the root note A♭. Its notes are A♭, C♭, E♭ and G♭. It's enharmonically the same chord as G♯m7.
Transpose
Quality
Short answer
Minor seventh chords are smooth and neutral, softer than a plain minor triad. They're a staple of jazz, funk and neo-soul, where they add motion without heavy tension.
- Notes
- A♭ · C♭ · E♭ · G♭
- Formula
- 1 · ♭3 · 5 · ♭7
- Semitones
- 0 · 3 · 7 · 10
- Note
- A♭
- Quality
- Minor 7
- Symbol
- A♭m7
A♭m7 on piano
4 notesView:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
To play A♭m7 on piano, place your right hand with your thumb on A♭, index finger on C♭, middle finger on E♭ and little finger on G♭. Press the keys together and listen for an even sound. On the keyboard A♭, E♭ and G♭ are black keys and C♭ is white, the key you'd normally call B. 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
- C♭♭3
- E♭5
- G♭♭7
A♭m7 on guitar
View:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
On guitar, A♭m7 is commonly played with the voicing shown above. This one is a barre at fret 4: keep the index finger flat across the strings and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them.
A♭ · C♭ · E♭ · G♭
Play A♭m7 on the online piano
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A♭m7 chord notes
Also known as G♯m7
| Degree | Interval | Semitones | Note | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Root | 0 | A♭(Ab) | |
| ♭3 | Minor third | 3 | C♭(Cb) | |
| 5 | Perfect fifth | 7 | E♭(Eb) | |
| ♭7 | Minor seventh | 10 | G♭(Gb) |
How to use the A♭m7 chord
The A♭m7 chord is built from a root, a minor third, a perfect fifth and a minor seventh. Start at the root A♭ and stack the intervals to get the whole chord: A♭, C♭, E♭ and G♭. The same formula gives you the chord in any other key.
Minor seventh chords are foundational in jazz, funk, neo-soul and R&B. They're typically the iim7, iiim7 or vim7 chord of a major key and the i7 of a minor key.
In major keys A♭m7 is the ii7 in G♭ major and the vi7 in C♭ major; in minor keys it's the iv7 in E♭ minor and the i7 in A♭ minor.
How A♭m7 differs from similar chords
A♭m7 puts a minor seventh on a minor triad, which separates it from A♭m(maj7), whose seventh is a half step higher and much sharper. Compared with A♭m7♭5, it keeps a perfect fifth, so it sounds relaxed rather than tense. Its upper three notes form the major triad a minor third above the root, which is why it blends so easily with major chords.
Where A♭m7 is used
A minor chord works as the tonic of its own key, and as the vi or the ii of a major one. Each progression below is written in the key its numerals name.
As the vi in a major keyC♭ major
- Imaj7C♭maj7
- vi7A♭m7
- ii7D♭m7
- V7G♭7
A turnaround. A♭m7 is the relative minor of C♭, which softens the way back to the tonic.
As a modal tonicA♭ minor
A modal vamp - A♭m7 is home, and the loop never resolves away from it.
Questions people ask
- What notes are in the A♭m7 chord?
- The A♭m7 chord contains A♭, C♭, E♭ and G♭ (Ab, Cb, Eb and Gb in plain text).
- Is the A♭m7 chord major or minor?
- A♭m7 is a minor seventh chord. Minor seventh chords are smooth and neutral, softer than a plain minor triad. They're a staple of jazz, funk and neo-soul, where they add motion without heavy tension.
- What key is the A♭m7 chord in?
- In major keys A♭m7 is the ii7 in G♭ major and the vi7 in C♭ major; in minor keys it's the iv7 in E♭ minor and the i7 in A♭ minor.
- How do you play A♭m7 on piano?
- Place your fingers on A♭, C♭, E♭ and G♭ 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♭ is white, the key you'd normally call B. The thumb starts on a black key, so slide the whole hand a little further in, towards the fallboard.
- How do you play A♭m7 on guitar?
- Use the fingering in the diagram above. This one is a barre at fret 4: keep the index finger flat across the strings and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them.
- What is another name for the A♭m7 chord?
- A♭m7 is enharmonically equivalent to G♯m7. Both chord names describe exactly the same notes, but the spelling depends on the key you are playing in.