As the ii in a minor ii-V-iC♭ minor
The minor cadence. D♭ Diminished leads into the dominant, and the seventh is what makes it a ii rather than a diminished triad.
D♭ Diminished Chord: Guitar, Piano and Notes
The D♭ Diminished chord is built on the root note D♭. Its notes are D♭, F♭ and A𝄫. It's enharmonically the same chord as C♯ Diminished.
Transpose
Quality
Short answer
Diminished chords sound unstable and suspenseful. Two stacked minor thirds create a tight, dissonant tension that composers use for passing chords, horror scores and dramatic turnarounds.
- Notes
- D♭ · F♭ · A𝄫
- Formula
- 1 · ♭3 · ♭5
- Semitones
- 0 · 3 · 6
- Note
- D♭
- Quality
- Diminished
- Symbol
- D♭°
D♭ Diminished on piano
3 notesView:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
To play D♭ Diminished on piano, place your right hand with your thumb on D♭, middle finger on F♭ and little finger on A𝄫. Press the keys together and listen for an even sound. Practice moving in and out of the chord slowly, then bring in a metronome.
- D♭1
- F♭♭3
- A𝄫♭5
D♭ Diminished on guitar
View:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
On guitar, D♭ Diminished is commonly played with the voicing shown above. This one is a barre shape: keep the index finger flat across the fretboard and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them. Strum only the strings marked as active in the diagram.
D♭ Diminished chord notes
Also known as C♯ Diminished
| Degree | Interval | Semitones | Note | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Root | 0 | D♭(Db) | |
| ♭3 | Minor third | 3 | F♭(Fb) | |
| ♭5 | Diminished fifth | 6 | A𝄫(Abb) |
How to use the D♭ Diminished chord
The D♭ Diminished chord is built from a root, a minor third and a diminished fifth. Start at the root D♭ and stack the intervals to get the whole chord: D♭, F♭ and A𝄫. The same formula gives you the chord in any other key.
Diminished chords are passing tools in classical, jazz, bluegrass and film music. They're often used as vii° leading to the tonic or as chromatic passing chords between diatonic chords.
Where D♭ Diminished is used
A diminished chord is a tension chord. It works as the leading-tone chord of a key, and as a dominant seventh with its root left out.
Scales that contain D♭°
These scales include D♭° as one of their diatonic chords. Use them to find melodies and improvisation ideas that fit perfectly.
C♯ Locrian
C♯ · D · E · F♯ · G · A · B
C♯ Altered
C♯ · D · E · F · G · A · B
D Major
D · E · F♯ · G · A · B · C♯
D Harmonic Minor
D · E · F · G · A · B♭ · C♯
D Melodic Minor
D · E · F · G · A · B · C♯
D Harmonic Major
D · E · F♯ · G · A · B♭ · C♯
E♭ Altered
E♭ · F♭ · G♭ · A𝄫 · B𝄫 · C♭ · D♭
E Melodic Minor
E · F♯ · G · A · B · C♯ · D♯
E Dorian
E · F♯ · G · A · B · C♯ · D
E Neapolitan Major
E · F · G · A · B · C♯ · D♯
F Lydian Augmented
F · G · A · B · C♯ · D · E
F♯ Phrygian
F♯ · G · A · B · C♯ · D · E
Questions people ask
- What notes are in the D♭ Diminished chord?
- The D♭ Diminished chord contains D♭, F♭ and A𝄫 (Db, Fb and Abb in plain text).
- Is the D♭ Diminished chord major or minor?
- D♭ Diminished is a diminished chord. Diminished chords sound unstable and suspenseful. Two stacked minor thirds create a tight, dissonant tension that composers use for passing chords, horror scores and dramatic turnarounds.
- How do you play D♭ Diminished on piano?
- Place your fingers on D♭, F♭ and A𝄫 and play them together. The root usually goes to the little finger of the left hand, the upper notes to the right.
- How do you play D♭ Diminished on guitar?
- D♭ Diminished is typically played with the fingering shown in the diagram above. If one of the chord tones lines up with an open string, an open position is worth trying too.
- What is another name for the D♭ Diminished chord?
- D♭ Diminished is enharmonically equivalent to C♯ Diminished. Both chord names describe exactly the same notes, but the spelling depends on the key you are playing in.