Chords
G# m9b5
G# · A# · B · D · F#
G# m9b5 (G#m9b5) is a diminished chord of 5 notes: G# · A# · B · D · F#.
G# m9b5
G# · A# · B · D · F#
Voicings on the piano
| Voicing | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|
| Closed, root position | G#3 · A#3 · B3 · D4 · F#4 | |
| Open (drop 2) | D3 · G#3 · A#3 · B3 · F#4 | |
| Shell | G#3 · B3 · F#4 | |
| Rootless | A#3 · B3 · F#4 |
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Anatomy
G# m9b5 (G#m9b5) contains the notes G# · A# · B · D · F#, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.
Read on: how triads are built · seventh chords
Inversions
An inversion of G# m9b5 puts a chord tone other than G# in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.
Where it lives
The keys and the scales G# m9b5 belongs to.
In which keys
G# m9b5 is diatonic to 1 key; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.
- D# minorIVm9b5Subdominant
Extensions beyond the seventh count when every note sits in the key.
Scales that contain it
G# m9b5 fits inside these scales, each built on G#.
- G# Locrian #2G# · A# · B · C# · D · E · F#
- G# Composite BluesG# · A# · B · B# · C# · D · D# · E# · F#
Understanding the G# m9b5 chord
Names and symbols
G#m9b5 is the chord symbol for G# m9b5.
The half-diminished seventh is written m7♭5 on charts and ø7 (or just ø) in jazz notation; both name the same four notes. It is not the diminished seventh, °7, whose seventh is a semitone lower.
Common questions
- What notes are in the G# m9b5 chord?
- The G# m9b5 chord contains the notes G# · A# · B · D · F#: the root G# with the intervals 1P, 2M, 3m, 5d, 7m stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally G#, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
- What intervals make up the G# m9b5 chord?
- Measured from G#, the G# m9b5 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 2M, 3m, 5d, 7m. 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 G# m9b5 chord?
- On guitar the most common G# m9b5 shape is 410102, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play G#3 · A#3 · B3 · D4 · F#4 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.