G♭m9 Chord: Guitar, Piano and Notes
The G♭m9 chord is a minor ninth chord built on the root note G♭. Its notes are G♭, B𝄫, D♭, F♭ and A♭. It's enharmonically the same chord as F♯m9.
Minor ninth chords are smooth, cool and slightly melancholy. The ninth widens a minor seventh into something more spacious, which is why it anchors so much modern R&B, house and jazz comping.
- Notes
- G♭ · B𝄫 · D♭ · F♭ · A♭
- Formula
- 1 · ♭3 · 5 · ♭7 · 9
- Semitones
- 0 · 3 · 7 · 10 · 14
- Note
- G♭
- Quality
- Minor 9
- Symbol
- G♭m9
G♭m9 on piano
5 notes
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
To play G♭m9 on piano, place your right hand with your thumb on G♭, index finger on B𝄫, middle finger on D♭, ring finger on F♭ and little finger on A♭. Press the keys together and listen for an even sound. On the keyboard G♭, D♭ and A♭ are black keys and B𝄫 and F♭ are white, the keys you'd normally call A and E. 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.
- G♭1
- B𝄫♭3
- D♭5
- F♭♭7
- A♭9
G♭m9 on guitar
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
On guitar, G♭m9 is commonly played with the voicing shown above. The fretted notes sit between frets 1 and 2. Strings 5 and 1 ring open.
G♭ · B𝄫 · D♭ · F♭ · A♭
Play G♭m9 on the online piano
Free, in your browser: play with the mouse, your computer keyboard or a USB MIDI keyboard. No sign-up.
G♭m9 chord notes
Also known as F♯m9
| Degree | Interval | Semitones | Note | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Root | 0 | G♭(Gb) | |
| ♭3 | Minor third | 3 | B𝄫(Bbb) | |
| 5 | Perfect fifth | 7 | D♭(Db) | |
| ♭7 | Minor seventh | 10 | F♭(Fb) | |
| 9 | Major ninth | 14 | A♭(Ab) |
How to use the G♭m9 chord
The G♭m9 chord is built from a root, a minor third, a perfect fifth, a minor seventh and a major ninth. Start at the root G♭ and stack the intervals to get the whole chord: G♭, B𝄫, D♭, F♭ and A♭. The same formula gives you the chord in any other key.
Minor ninth chords stand in for minor sevenths as the ii chord in a ii-V-I, or as the tonic of a minor groove. Neo-soul, house, jazz and R&B use them as the default minor colour.
How G♭m9 differs from similar chords
G♭m9 adds a major ninth to G♭m7, which sets it apart from a minor triad with only an added ninth and from G♭9, which has a major third. Its upper four notes form the major seventh chord a minor third above the root.
Where G♭m9 is used
No progression is shown for this spelling
Every key G♭m9 would have a function in has a tonic that needs a double accidental, which is not a key this library teaches. The enharmonic spelling carries the same chord in a key that exists.
Questions people ask
- What notes are in the G♭m9 chord?
- The G♭m9 chord contains G♭, B𝄫, D♭, F♭ and A♭ (Gb, Bbb, Db, Fb and Ab in plain text).
- Is the G♭m9 chord major or minor?
- G♭m9 is a minor ninth chord. Minor ninth chords are smooth, cool and slightly melancholy. The ninth widens a minor seventh into something more spacious, which is why it anchors so much modern R&B, house and jazz comping.
- How do you play G♭m9 on piano?
- Place your fingers on G♭, B𝄫, 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. On the keyboard G♭, D♭ and A♭ are black keys and B𝄫 and F♭ are white, the keys you'd normally call A and E. The thumb starts on a black key, so slide the whole hand a little further in, towards the fallboard.
- How do you play G♭m9 on guitar?
- Use the fingering in the diagram above. The fretted notes sit between frets 1 and 2. Strings 5 and 1 ring open.
- What is another name for the G♭m9 chord?
- G♭m9 is enharmonically equivalent to F♯m9. Both chord names describe exactly the same notes, but the spelling depends on the key you are playing in.