What notes are in the Ab 9no5 chord?

The Ab 9no5 chord contains the notes Ab · C · Gb · Bb: the root Ab with the intervals 1P, 3M, 7m, 9M stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Ab, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.

What intervals make up the Ab 9no5 chord?

Measured from Ab, the Ab 9no5 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3M, 7m, 9M. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.

How do I play the Ab 9no5 chord?

On guitar the most common Ab 9no5 shape is 414112, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play Ab3 · C4 · Gb4 · Bb4 with the right hand, or move the root down into the left hand and keep the rest above it. Every shape on this page plays when you press it.

Ab 9no5 Chord (Ab9no5): Notes, Piano & Guitar

Play it on your instrument

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Voicings on the piano

Voicing	Notes	Play it on your instrument
Closed, root position	Ab3 · C4 · Gb4 · Bb4
Open (drop 2)	Gb3 · Ab3 · C4 · Bb4
Shell	Ab3 · C4 · Gb4
Rootless	C3 · Gb3 · Bb3

Tap a key or a fret to hear it.

Anatomy

Ab 9no5 (Ab9no5) contains the notes Ab · C · Gb · Bb, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.

Read on: how triads are built · seventh chords · extensions

Inversions

An inversion of Ab 9no5 puts a chord tone other than Ab in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.

Where it lives

The keys and the scales Ab 9no5 belongs to.

In which keys

Ab 9no5 is diatonic to 2 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.

Db majorV9no5Dominant
Bb minorVII9no5Subdominant

Scales that contain it

Ab 9no5 fits inside these scales, each built on Ab.

Ab Whole ToneAb · Bb · C · D · E · F#
Ab MixolydianAb · Bb · C · Db · Eb · F · Gb
Ab Lydian DominantAb · Bb · C · D · Eb · F · Gb
Ab PrometheusAb · Bb · C · D · F · Gb
Ab Mixolydian b6Ab · Bb · C · Db · Eb · Fb · Gb
Ab Leading Whole ToneAb · Bb · C · D · E · Gb · G
Ab Lydian MinorAb · Bb · C · D · Eb · Fb · Gb
Ab BebopAb · Bb · C · Db · Eb · F · Gb · G

Related chords

Chords that share most of their notes with Ab 9no5: simpler and richer stacks of the same notes, and the substitutes a chart would accept.

Simpler

Ab7no5Ab · C · Gb

Richer

Ab9Ab · C · Eb · Gb · Bb
Ab13Ab · C · Eb · Gb · Bb · F
Ab13no5Ab · C · Gb · Bb · F
Ab9#5Ab · C · E · Gb · Bb
Ab9b13Ab · C · Gb · Bb · Fb
Ab9#5#11Ab · C · E · Gb · Bb · D

Common substitutions

D9no5D · F# · C · E
D9no5 shares the third and seventh of Ab9no5 a tritone away, so it can replace it as a dominant.
Ebm7Eb · Gb · Bb · Db
Ebm7 is the ii chord that leads into Ab9no5 in a ii–V.

9no5 on every root

C9no5 C#9no5 Db9no5 D9no5 Eb9no5 E9no5 F9no5 F#9no5 Gb9no5 G9no5 G#9no5 A9no5 Bb9no5 B9no5

Open it in a tool

Understanding the Ab 9no5 chord

Names and symbols

Ab9no5 is the chord symbol for Ab 9no5.

Ab 9no5 and G# 9no5 are the same sound spelled two ways; both have a page here, and each links to the other. G# 9no5

Common questions

What notes are in the Ab 9no5 chord?: The Ab 9no5 chord contains the notes Ab · C · Gb · Bb: the root Ab with the intervals 1P, 3M, 7m, 9M stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Ab, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
What intervals make up the Ab 9no5 chord?: Measured from Ab, the Ab 9no5 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3M, 7m, 9M. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.
How do I play the Ab 9no5 chord?: On guitar the most common Ab 9no5 shape is 414112, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play Ab3 · C4 · Gb4 · Bb4 with the right hand, or move the root down into the left hand and keep the rest above it. Every shape on this page plays when you press it.