How many semitones is a diminished tenth?

A Diminished Tenth spans 14 semitones: C – Ebb. Count the semitones of any interval with the interval calculator.

When does a diminished tenth occur?

In chromatic harmony where an altered third is voiced more than an octave above the root and has to keep its letter name.

What is a compound interval?

Any interval wider than an octave. A Diminished Tenth is an octave plus a diminished third, and it keeps the character of that simple interval in a more open, less congested form.

How do I play Diminished Tenth?

On guitar the handiest shape is Next string, B 1 · E 10, read as string and fret; the instrument panel draws it from any starting note with the other shapes. On the piano count 14 semitones up from any key, black keys included. Play the notes together for the harmonic form, one after the other for the melodic form.

What is the inversion of Diminished Tenth?

The inversion of Diminished Tenth is the Augmented Sixth: put the lower note an octave higher and the distance that remains is the inversion. The two always add up to an octave, 14 semitones and 10 semitones, and swap their qualities between major and minor, or keep perfect as perfect.

Diminished Tenth Interval: How It Sounds, with Song Examples

Play it on your instrument

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From

On the piano, from every note

From	Notes	Play it on your instrument
C	C – Ebb
C#	C# – Eb
D	D – Fb
Eb	Eb – Gbb
E	E – Gb
F	F – Abb
F#	F# – Ab
G	G – Bbb
Ab	Ab – Cbb
A	A – Cb
Bb	Bb – Dbb
B	B – Db

Tap a key or a fret to hear it.

Number and quality

An interval has two names. The number counts the letter names from the lower note to the upper one, and the quality counts the semitones inside that number. Diminished Tenth spans 10 letter names, which makes it a tenth, and 14 semitones, which makes it diminished.

DLetter
ELetter
FLetter
GLetter
ALetter
BLetter
CLetter
DLetter
14 semitones

Read on: number and quality · inversion · compound intervals · consonance and dissonance

Every tenth

A tenth can take these qualities, one semitone apart; choose one to see the upper note move and hear the pair.

Where it lives

Diminished Tenth is in every chord whose formula includes 10d from the root, in every scale that includes it from the tonic, and between these pairs of notes in a major key.

Related intervals

The intervals one step from Diminished Tenth: its inversion, the same sound spelled differently, its simple or compound form, and its nearest neighbours in size.

Augmented Sixth6A · 10 semitones · C – A#
Inversion: together they make an octave
Major Ninth9M · 14 semitones · C – D
The same sound, spelled differently
Diminished Third3d · 2 semitones · C – Ebb
The simple form, an octave narrower
Minor Ninth9m · 13 semitones · C – Db
One size away
Minor Tenth10m · 15 semitones · C – Eb
One size away

Open it in a tool

Understanding Diminished Tenth

Names and symbols

Diminished Tenth is written d10, 10d: the letter is the quality, the number the size. Chord formulas on this site write the number first, as tonal does.

A compound interval is a simple interval plus an octave, and the two names are used interchangeably in chord symbols: a 9th in a chord is the 2nd of the scale an octave up, an 11th the 4th, a 13th the 6th. The compound name says the note sits above the seventh.

How it sounds

A Diminished Tenth spans 14 semitones: C – Ebb. It is an octave plus a diminished third, and compound intervals keep the quality of the simple interval inside them while losing much of its edge — the extra octave gives the two notes room to stop interfering with each other.

It measures the same as a major ninth, and it is spelled as a tenth because both notes function a third apart across the octave.

How it is used

It belongs to chromatic analysis rather than to everyday voicing.

Learn this properly

Chapter 5: Intervals

Common questions

How many semitones is a diminished tenth?: A Diminished Tenth spans 14 semitones: C – Ebb. Count the semitones of any interval with the interval calculator.
When does a diminished tenth occur?: In chromatic harmony where an altered third is voiced more than an octave above the root and has to keep its letter name.
What is a compound interval?: Any interval wider than an octave. A Diminished Tenth is an octave plus a diminished third, and it keeps the character of that simple interval in a more open, less congested form.
How do I play Diminished Tenth?: On guitar the handiest shape is Next string, B 1 · E 10, read as string and fret; the instrument panel draws it from any starting note with the other shapes. On the piano count 14 semitones up from any key, black keys included. Play the notes together for the harmonic form, one after the other for the melodic form.
What is the inversion of Diminished Tenth?: The inversion of Diminished Tenth is the Augmented Sixth: put the lower note an octave higher and the distance that remains is the inversion. The two always add up to an octave, 14 semitones and 10 semitones, and swap their qualities between major and minor, or keep perfect as perfect.