What notes are in the Eb 9b13 chord?

The Eb 9b13 chord contains the notes Eb · G · Db · F · Cb: the root Eb with the intervals 1P, 3M, 7m, 9M, 13m stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Eb, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.

What intervals make up the Eb 9b13 chord?

Measured from Eb, the Eb 9b13 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3M, 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.

How do I play the Eb 9b13 chord?

On guitar the most common Eb 9b13 shape is x63603, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play Eb3 · G3 · Db4 · F4 · Cb4 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.

Eb 9b13 Chord (Eb9b13): 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	Eb3 · G3 · Db4 · F4 · Cb4
Open (drop 2)	Eb3 · F3 · G3 · Cb4 · Db4
Shell	Eb3 · G3 · Db4
Rootless	G3 · Db4 · F4 · Cb4

Tap a key or a fret to hear it.

Anatomy

Eb 9b13 (Eb9b13) contains the notes Eb · G · Db · F · Cb, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.

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

Inversions

An inversion of Eb 9b13 puts a chord tone other than Eb in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.

Where it lives

The keys and the scales Eb 9b13 belongs to.

In which keys

Eb 9b13 is not diatonic to any major or minor key: at least one of its notes lies outside every one of them.

Scales that contain it

Eb 9b13 fits inside these scales, each built on Eb.

Eb Whole ToneEb · F · G · A · B · C#
Eb Mixolydian b6Eb · F · G · Ab · Bb · Cb · Db
Eb Leading Whole ToneEb · F · G · A · B · Db · D
Eb Lydian MinorEb · F · G · A · Bb · Cb · Db
Eb Messiaen's Mode #6Eb · F · G · Ab · A · B · C# · D
Eb Messiaen's Mode #3Eb · F · Gb · G · A · Bb · Cb · Db · D

Related chords

Chords that share most of their notes with Eb 9b13: simpler and richer stacks of the same notes, and the substitutes a chart would accept.

Simpler

Eb7#5Eb · G · B · Db
Eb7b13Eb · G · Db · Cb
Eb9no5Eb · G · Db · F
Ebmaj#5add9Eb · G · B · F
EbaugEb · G · B
Eb7no5Eb · G · Db

Richer

Eb9#5#11Eb · G · B · Db · F · A
Eb9#11b13Eb · G · Bb · Db · F · A · Cb

Common substitutions

A9b13A · C# · G · B · F
A9b13 shares the third and seventh of Eb9b13 a tritone away, so it can replace it as a dominant.
Bbm7Bb · Db · F · Ab
Bbm7 is the ii chord that leads into Eb9b13 in a ii–V.

9b13 on every root

C9b13 C#9b13 D9b13 E9b13 F9b13 F#9b13 G9b13 G#9b13 Ab9b13 A9b13 Bb9b13 B9b13

Open it in a tool

Understanding the Eb 9b13 chord

Names and symbols

Eb9b13 is the chord symbol for Eb 9b13.

Common questions

What notes are in the Eb 9b13 chord?: The Eb 9b13 chord contains the notes Eb · G · Db · F · Cb: the root Eb with the intervals 1P, 3M, 7m, 9M, 13m stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Eb, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
What intervals make up the Eb 9b13 chord?: Measured from Eb, the Eb 9b13 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3M, 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.
How do I play the Eb 9b13 chord?: On guitar the most common Eb 9b13 shape is x63603, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play Eb3 · G3 · Db4 · F4 · Cb4 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.