Chords
Ab Augmented
Ab · C · E
The augmented triad — two stacked major thirds, splitting the octave into three equal parts.
Also written Ab+ · Ab+5 · Ab^#5
Ab Augmented
Ab · C · E
Voicings on the piano
| Voicing | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|
| Closed, root position | Ab3 · C4 · E4 |
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Anatomy
Ab Augmented (Abaug) contains the notes Ab · C · E, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.
Read on: how triads are built
Inversions
An inversion of Ab Augmented 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 Augmented belongs to.
In which keys
Ab Augmented is diatonic to 3 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.
Scales that contain it
Ab Augmented fits inside these scales, each built on Ab.
- Ab Whole ToneAb · Bb · C · D · E · F#
- Ab Harmonic MajorAb · Bb · C · Db · Eb · Fb · G
- Ab Flat Six PentatonicAb · Bb · C · Eb · Fb
- Ab AugmentedAb · B · C · Eb · E · G
- Ab Mixolydian b6Ab · Bb · C · Db · Eb · Fb · Gb
- Ab Lydian AugmentedAb · Bb · C · D · E · F · G
- Ab Augmented HeptatonicAb · B · C · Db · Eb · E · G
- Ab Leading Whole ToneAb · Bb · C · D · E · Gb · G
Understanding the Ab Augmented chord
Names and symbols
Abaug is the chord symbol for Ab Augmented; it is also written Ab+, Ab+5, Ab^#5.
How it is built
On Ab it is Ab · C · E: 1P · 3M · 5A. The fifth is raised a semitone, which makes both thirds major and the whole chord symmetrical.
How it is used
Like the diminished seventh its symmetry means it belongs to no key, so it functions as a pivot or as a moment of suspension. As an altered dominant (the ♯5) it sharpens the pull toward resolution.
In a rising inner-voice cliché — I, I+, I6, I7 — it is the second chord, where one voice climbs chromatically while everything else stays put.
Learn this properly
Chapter 10: Chords: Triads and SeventhsCommon questions
- What notes are in Abaug?
- Abaug contains Ab · C · E. Name any set of notes with the chord identifier.
- How do you build an augmented chord?
- Stack two major thirds: root, major third, augmented fifth.
- How many different augmented triads are there?
- Four. The chord splits the octave into three equal parts, so the twelve roots produce only four distinct note sets.
- What notes are in the Ab Augmented chord?
- The Ab Augmented chord contains the notes Ab · C · E: the root Ab with the intervals 1P, 3M, 5A 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 Augmented chord?
- Measured from Ab, the Ab Augmented chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3M, 5A. 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.