1,008 guitar chords with several shapes each, finger numbers, difficulty and real sound, in any tuning.
A♭9 (also written G♯9) is a dominant ninth chord made of 5 notes: A♭, C, E♭, G♭, B♭. It sounds funky and full, a seventh chord with more colour, and you hear it in funk, soul and blues, where it often replaces a plain 7th chord. It is the V chord of D♭ major and turns up in 2 other keys.
The library above opens on A♭9 with 11 shapes up and down the neck. Tap a shape to hear it, or play it one string at a time.
| Note | Degree | Interval from A♭ | Semitones |
|---|---|---|---|
| A♭ | 1 | root | 0 |
| C | 3 | major third | 4 |
| E♭ | 5 | perfect fifth | 7 |
| G♭ | ♭7 | minor seventh | 10 |
| B♭ | 9 | major ninth | 14 |
Formula: 1 – 3 – 5 – ♭7 – 9. On guitar the 5th is often left out of the bigger shapes without changing the chord. With the other spelling, G♯9 is G♯, B♯, D♯, F♯, A♯: the same sounds under different names.
x(11)(10)(11)(11)(11)4343xx411112xx65764645464x431xThe fret 10 shape is the one to learn first. Once it is easy, try the shape at the 5th fret (xx6576): the same chord, higher and brighter, handy when the chords before and after it sit up the neck.
A♭9 belongs to 3 keys: V in D♭ major, V7 in C♯ minor, VII in B♭ minor. In D♭ major, try I–V–vi–IV: D♭ – A♭9 – B♭m – G♭.
A♭, C, E♭, G♭, B♭: the root, major third, fifth, minor seventh, ninth.
Fret 10: x(11)(10)(11)(11)(11) (low string first), rated Easy.
A♭9 has B♭. A♭9 sounds funky and full, a seventh chord with more colour; A♭7 sounds restless; it wants to move on, usually to the chord a fifth below.
No. The easiest shape is rated Easy and needs 3 fingers.