Chords
Ab Minor thirteenth
Ab · Cb · Eb · Gb · Bb · F
The minor thirteenth — a minor seventh chord extended all the way up, with a bright sixth degree on top.
Also written Ab-13
Ab Minor thirteenth
Ab · Cb · Eb · Gb · Bb · F
Voicings on the piano
| Voicing | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|
| Closed, root position | Ab3 · Cb3 · Eb4 · Gb4 · Bb4 · F5 | |
| Open (drop 2) | Cb3 · Ab3 · Bb3 · Eb4 · Gb4 · F5 | |
| Shell | Ab3 · Cb3 · Gb4 | |
| Rootless | Cb3 · Gb4 · Bb4 · F5 |
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Anatomy
Ab Minor thirteenth (Abm13) contains the notes Ab · Cb · Eb · Gb · Bb · F, 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 Minor thirteenth 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 Minor thirteenth belongs to.
In which keys
Ab Minor thirteenth is diatonic to 2 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.
Extensions beyond the seventh count when every note sits in the key.
Scales that contain it
Ab Minor thirteenth fits inside these scales, each built on Ab.
- Ab DorianAb · Bb · Cb · Db · Eb · F · Gb
- Ab Dorian #4Ab · Bb · Cb · D · Eb · F · Gb
- Ab Bebop MinorAb · Bb · Cb · C · Db · Eb · F · Gb
Understanding the Ab Minor thirteenth chord
Names and symbols
Abm13 is the chord symbol for Ab Minor thirteenth; it is also written Ab-13.
Ab Minor thirteenth and G# Minor thirteenth are the same sound spelled two ways; both have a page here, and each links to the other. G# Minor thirteenth
How it is built
On Ab it is Ab · Cb · Eb · Gb · Bb · F, stacking 1P · 3m · 5P · 7m · 9M · 13M. The thirteenth is major even though the chord is minor, which is what gives it the Dorian flavour.
How it is used
It is the full expression of the Dorian sound — a minor chord with a raised sixth — and a staple of modal jazz and of soul vamps that stay on one chord for a long time.
Learn this properly
Chapter 10: Chords: Triads and SeventhsCommon questions
- What notes are in Abm13?
- Abm13 contains Ab · Cb · Eb · Gb · Bb · F. Name any set of notes with the chord identifier.
- What scale fits a m13 chord?
- Dorian. Its raised sixth degree is exactly the thirteenth of the chord.
- How is m13 voiced?
- Usually root, third, seventh, ninth and thirteenth, with the fifth and eleventh dropped.
- What notes are in the Ab Minor thirteenth chord?
- The Ab Minor thirteenth chord contains the notes Ab · Cb · Eb · Gb · Bb · F: the root Ab with the intervals 1P, 3m, 5P, 7m, 9M, 13M 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 Minor thirteenth chord?
- Measured from Ab, the Ab Minor thirteenth chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3m, 5P, 7m, 9M, 13M. 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.